


Sunlight and Shadow

by businessghost



Category: The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: Angst, Blood of Olympus Spoilers, Fluff, M/M, Spoilers, please be careful do not get spoiled, there will probably be a happy ending. maybe.
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-10-08
Updated: 2015-04-16
Packaged: 2018-02-20 10:42:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 19
Words: 20,323
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2425793
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/businessghost/pseuds/businessghost
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Nico keeps his promise</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! I haven't posted anything here in a while, but if there's anything that could call me out of a dreary cave of writer's block it would be Nico di Angelo. Grazie, i miei dolce!

Nico kept his promise to Will, subjecting himself to three days of rest in the Camp’s infirmary. Or three days of torture, as Nico often complained to Will, even as the skeletal butterflies flapped incessantly in his stomach. He became quite familiar with Will Solace’s habits, having nothing to do for 3 days but be spoon-fed ambrosia and get made fun of for his sleep talking.

  
Nico listed them out as Will changed yet another bandage on Chris’s leg.  
1\. He twisted his camp necklace around his index finger when he talked, which was just so _annoying_ that Nico had nearly come to like it.  
2\. He had a terrible habit of waking his patients with a corny joke (“What kind of footwear do the Olympians use?” “Tennis Zeus!”) which Nico had heard so many of that he had actually _laughed_ at the last one, snorting a little and then cutting off in some sort of embarrassment. It hadn’t helped that Solace was looking at him with a weird, syrupy expression on his face. Nico had to diffuse that situation with his patented I’m-a-son-of-Hades death stare, and that totally worked, except usually people on the receiving end didn’t turn away _giggling_.  
3\. And the giggling, that was its own item on the list, Nico decided. Will was so quick to laugh at anything, and was his laugh ever something to behold. It started as snickering, and eventually elevated to full-on belly laughter, loud and echoing through the infirmary, often waking Nico up, but he couldn’t find it in himself to hate it as much as he usually would.  
4\. But topping off the list was his gentleness. He treated Nico like he was really going to become a skeleton, but, looking down at his thin arm, Nico supposed he could see the logic there. He treated Nico not like he was repulsive, not like he’d somehow contract death just by touching him, but like any other demigod under his care. And it was just so irritating that Nico blushed a little every time he thought about it. The Will Solace who healed was so different from the Will on the battlefield just days ago, putting that creepy scarecrow, Octavian in his place, declaring himself as a real son of Apollo. Nico shivered a little, remembering it.

  
Nico’s shiver brought nursemaid Will to his side, fussing and searching for another blanket.

  
“Will. Will! WILL!” Nico smiled as he whipped around, his hands frozen over a chest full of linens. “I’m fine, Solace.” Nico waited as Will studied him.

  
“I suppose you are… You may go, Nico.” He smiled a little wistfully. “Just, take it easy okay? No summoning anything, not even a dog bone.”

  
Nico blanched. “I. I can go?”  
“Yep.” Will tried for a wider smile, “The torture’s over, Death the Kid.” He chuckled a little under his breath, apparently having made some kind of joke.

  
“Wow. Well, I guess I should go, then. Glad I don’t have to listen to your singing while you change out IVs…”

  
“Hey!” Will feigned offense. “My rendition of ‘Anaconda’ is legendary.”

  
“It sure is, Solace. I’ll tell my grandkids about how terrible it was. What kind of son of Apollo are you? I thought he was a _good_ musician!”

  
Will stood at the end of Nico’s bed, hands on his hips, “Are we stalling, Mr. di Angelo? I thought you would be excited to get out of here.”

  
At this, Nico launched himself out of the bed, blinking and swaying a little at the sudden motion. He punched Will lightly on the arm, half-smiling, his hand lingering there “If you want me gone, maybe you shouldn’t be flirting so much.” A second passed, and Nico realized what he said. His face drained, turning even paler than it normally was. He fumbled in his mind… Had he really just said that? It just… slipped out! He was about to tell Will as much, when the son of Apollo laid a tanned hand over Nico’s pale one, still resting on his forearm.

  
“Actually… I was thinking maybe I could use your help. A son of Hades who can sense souls? You could be useful around here, although you’re going to have to learn to appreciate _modern_ music, Grandpa.”

  
Nico felt his face relax into a relieved smile. “Hey now, respect your elders.”

  
Will’s smile matched his own as he quipped back, “Only when you learn to respect Nicki Minaj!”

  
And just like that, he was holding hands with Will Solace, their fingers having intertwined of their own accord as they spoke. Nico’s voice softened. “I guess I could stick around a little longer.”

  
“Great! But I have just one request-”

  
Suddenly, Buford the wonder table, his drawers full of pill bottles and smelling like lemon pledge burst between them, breaking their hands apart. His holographic mini-Hedge screamed out “PUT SOME CLOTHES ON!”

  
Will laughed, that easy warm sound, and he managed to gasp out “Yeah. That.”

  
Nico looked down at himself, mortified, and saw that he was still wearing his hospital gown. He felt a blush creep over his cheeks and the back of his neck. Buford trundled away as Nico stood rooted to the spot, trying to will all of his feelings, like, ever, to disappear into the ground.  
Will finally recovered, breathless, and said “Hey, it’s not a look everyone could pull off, di Angelo. It looks great on you.”  
Nico covered his face with his hands and, in his mind, added approximately 4,000 more items to the list of Will Solace’s annoying habits.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nico is ticklish. Will is simply delighted by this turn of events.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a tiny little chapter! There will be more to come!

Will Solace was a gentle soul, this much Nico had known, being able to sense it as it fluttered around his ribcage. He was a bit lazy and laid-back, his presence could ease the tension in almost any situation. But this changed when he healed. As he concentrated he sucked in his lower lip, his normally dancing blue eyes took on a steely, intense quality. When he worked with the ill and injured, he was right where he belonged in the world.

                Nico stood watching him, having just changed into his normal clothes, smiling a little as he remembered the floral shirt he’d worn on the day the Earth itself rebelled against them. Will’s skillful hands danced, sewing up the skin of some unfortunate camper whose dagger wound had become infected, murmuring encouragements and getting her to sip some nectar. He finally turned away from the girl, looking a bit worn out from using his healing magic. He started momentarily upon seeing Nico.

                “Don’t you know it’s rude to stare, angel?”

                “Ciuccio” spat back Nico, having forgotten that he was no longer just an invisible observer.

                “Hey! No foreign insults! How will I ever know what you’re saying?”

                “Forse voi non, gattino…” His native Italian rolled smoothly off his tongue, and he smirked as he felt the words leave his lips.

                “Fine! Be that way! But two can play at this game” Will tapped a strange fist to the side of his head twice, before turning away “have fun figuring that out!”.

                “What the _heck_ was that?”

                “American Sign Language, di Angelo! And now you’ll never know what I called you!”

                Nico stomped over to Will, grabbing his arm and spinning the boy around to face him. Will looked shocked for a moment, declaring “That was dangerous!” and then he did the last thing Nico di Angelo would have ever imagined anyone doing to him. He _tickled_ Nico. He moved his fingers across Nico’s ribs, delight showing on his face as the terrifying Ghost King started laughing and writhing, trying to get away from the son of Apollo.

                Nico couldn’t control it, he’d always been ticklish, and his laughter was so genuine that he even heard himself snort. At that Will began laughing too. Nico decided it was time for a taste of his own medicine, reaching out for the taller boy he tickled under his ribs and arms, but Solace didn’t budge. His pride showed on his face

                “Sorry, angel, I’m un-tickle-able. You’ll have to do a lot better than that!”

                And so Nico did. He leaned up on his tiptoes, and kissed Will Solace lightly on the cheek. The tickling stopped abruptly as Will put a cautious hand to his cheek, almost like he was holding the kiss to his tan skin. He smiled mischievously as his ears reddened.

                “I knew you had a heart, tin man.”

                Nico felt the blood rush to his cheeks. He probably shouldn’t have done that. He wasn’t so sure he cared. Will adopted a stern expression,

                “Excuse me, nurse di Angelo, but you can’t possibly distract me like that while I’m working my magic”

                “Nurse?!” spluttered Nico, his embarrassment fading, leaving simple fondness behind.

                “Yes. And you know what, Nurse? I need you to go to the camp store and get me some more ambrosia. How about instead of endangering my patients you distract me later, maybe after dinner?”

                Nico felt a dopey smile creep across his face. “Deal.” His face then turned stony, his expression becoming suspiciously death stare-like, “But, if you _ever_ call me ‘Nurse’ again, I will swallow the entire Apollo cabin in Earth. Got it?”

                Will rolled his eyes, not really buying the death stare. “Got it. _Angel_.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "ciuccio" is Italian for "jackass", which my grandmother taught my sister and I to say as "chooch". So go forth, insult some Italian people!


	3. Chapter 3

Nico stepped onto the grass that lay between the infirmary and the camp store, walking by the volleyball courts and squinting in the bright sunlight. He crossed paths with Piper and Jason as they walked from the Big House to the cabins, holding hands and smiling, though Nico could sense the sadness clinging to their souls for Leo. He felt it too, but nobody could see _his_ soul.

                Jason noticed Nico waving an arm high over his head, his new glasses glinting. “Hey, Nico! So you’ve been released at last?”

                His questmates (friends, he supposed) hadn’t come to visit him more than once, as Piper had walked into the infirmary, taken one glance at Will and retreated, a frustratingly cryptic smile playing across her lips. “Yep. Just going to get some supplies for Will.”

                Jason’s left eyebrow raised so high that it may have been making an escape attempt. “ _Will?_ ” he said, being so stupidly, but somehow endearingly, obvious. Piper snickered silently at the strained sound of Jason’s voice, or maybe the strained look on his face. Honestly, the boy was a wreck.

                Nico rolled his eyes at his friend’s overreaction. “Yes. Will. I’m uh, working with him in the infirmary now, just until everything eases up.” He really hadn’t discussed a time limit with Will, but it felt right. By then it was likely that Will would want him gone, anyway. He might as well save him the trouble, and maybe he could work on the terrible décor of the Hades cabin.

                Piper cut in, her sweet voice paving over Jason’s blundering, “That sounds nice, Nico. We’ll be glad to see you in the dining pavilion again!”

                “Yeah well, I should probably eat some regular food. I’ve probably had enough ambrosia in the last few days to turn me into a furnace.”

                “Hedge and Millie are going to have cake for everyone tonight. They decided to wait a little while to celebrate for Chuck. Just y’know, in case…” she smiled sadly. And Nico did know. Her hope was admirable, but he had felt what he felt. He didn’t say that though.

                “That was nice of them” he said a bit awkwardly. Apparently easy conversation with one person didn’t make him a sociable talk show host. Duly noted. “There’s always hope, of course.”

                Jason pulled Piper closer to him, the blue feather in her hair brushing underneath his chin. They both nodded a little. Jason spoke again, and Nico could see Piper flinch a bit. He was not the greatest with words. “We’re just uh, gonna go back to my cabin so… uh… have fun with your errands?” Piper rolled her eyes skyward, as if praying to her mom that Jason would develop some decorum. Piper pulled sharply on Jason’s arm, dragging him across the grass as she shouted back to Nico “We’ll see you tonight!”

                Nico shook his head slightly, thinking of the two of them, and continuing to the store. As he walked in Connor Stoll jumped slightly, his pockets suspiciously bulging. A look of intense focus crossed Connor’s face and suddenly the bulges disappeared, as if he hadn’t taken anything at all.  That was a new trick for the Hermes cabin… Nico would have to guard his belongings a little more zealously.

                Katie Gardener was running the store today, and she chatted amiably about re-growing the strawberry fields that had been Roman-ized a few days ago. Nico was a little jealous, honestly. He wished his powers were as pleasant as hers. He’d often regretted being a child of Hades, but working with Will reminded him how much capacity he had to destroy, and he wasn’t sure he had any disposition for creation. Katie interrupted his train of thought, handing him a plastic bag full of ambrosia. It read ‘Thank You For Shopping (As If You Could Shop Anywhere Else)’.

                “Thanks Katie.”

                “No problem, Nico. You’re working in the infirmary with the Apollo kids, right?”

                Gossip these days must be slow. “Yep.”

                “Would you mind checking on one of my sisters? Her name’s Chrysanthemum, and she got bitten by a basilisk. I’m not allowed to check on her, because I’m not a healer, but you could right?” Her question lilted up at the end, her face shining with optimism.

                “I’m not really a healer either” Her expression drooped. Nico quickly added “But I’ll see what I can do.”

                She smiled at him, wide and sincere. “Thank you, Nico!”

                He looked down at his feet, mumbling “No problem, Katie.” He felt warm inside, being treated as a healer. Maybe he would stay with Will longer. _At the infirmary_ longer, he corrected the thought. There was no need to get ahead of himself.

                He walked back to the infirmary, presenting Will with the ambrosia. “Ah! The Ghost King returns, with my groceries”

                “Shut up, Solace.”

                “Yes, your majesty.”

                A beat of silence passed. “Actually, Will, I need to check on one of the patients. For Katie.”

                “Performing favors, now? Will the miracles never cease?”

                Nico punched the healer in the arm harder than was strictly necessary. “Her name’s Chrysanthemum.”

                The humor left Will’s eyes and his smile faded. “Actually, Nico, I was going to ask for your help with that. I think she’s, y’know…”

                His help? _Nico’s_ help? He said, in disbelief, “What, is she dying?” and he didn’t need an answer, Will’s look said it all.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What help is the son of Hades when trying to save a life?

The girl Nico stood over did not look like a daughter of Demeter. Nico had come to imagine all children of Demeter as the kind of people who might cry over stepping on a particularly pretty flower. He decided, as he gazed down at Chrysanthemum, that this was an unfair evaluation. This girl looked like she could take Thalia Grace in a fight and win. Her arms were tattooed heavily, and her hair was bright blue and shaved on the sides into a Mohawk. And that was just what he could see on the outside.

                Nico concentrated, trying to feel her soul. He was shocked both by how weak it was, and how strong. Her soul was barely clinging to her body, but it was fierce as a wildcat, remaining when it should have dissipated by now. He didn’t have any good news for Will when he walked outside of the small room the poisoned girl had been given.

                “Will, I’m not so sure this girl can be healed. Her soul is supposed to be in the underworld right now.” He didn’t really know how to help in the infirmary, but he was very familiar with how the death worked. “I can make sure that she goes to Elysium”

                Will didn’t even stop to consider this offer, his jaw setting in a way that made it very obvious he was about to do something undeniably stubborn and heroic. “I’m sorry, Nico, but that’s bullshit. We can’t just let more demigods _die_. Especially not her.”

                Nico did not like the tenderness in his voice. His own tone cooled significantly. “Oh, no, of course not. She’s just too special.”

                Will looked entirely baffled. “I’m… sorry? What did I do to get the ice king treatment?”

                Nico huffed, flicking some hair out of his eyes. “Nothing, Solace. How do you plan to cheat death, huh?”

                Recognition dawned on Will’s face. And then he _laughed_ right in Nico’s face. “You thought I?” His sentence dissolved into more giggles. “That we?”

                Nico’s cheeks flamed. He crossed his arms. “I did not!”

                “You so did! You’re jealous!”

                “Shut _up_ , Will!”

                His laughter finally subsided. “I promise, Angel, she’s just my friend.” A more somber mood settled back into the room. “And I was serious about saving her.”

                The son of Hades sighed deeply. “You Hero-types. Always saving someone.” Will looked at him, his eyes round and pleading. “I’ll help, obviously.”

                Will jumped, pumping his fist in the air. “I knew you would! Like it or not, Nico, you’re one of those ‘hero-types’.”

                Nico walked back into Chrysanthemum’s room, elbowing Will in the ribs as he passed. “Don’t push your luck, Solace.”

                They stood over the daughter of Demeter, Nico’s hands were wrapped around her ribcage, as close to her soul as he could get in the physical world. Will was standing to his right, a needle full of slightly purple liquid in one hand and a flask of nectar on a small table near the bed. He explained his plan, and Nico doubted it would work even more than he had before.

                “It’s very simple”, intoned Will (Nico had a feeling it wouldn’t be) “I have a few vials of this stuff in the big vaccine refrigerator in the back room. It’s basically a toxin-flushing agent. The only problem is it’s powerful. Really powerful. Like, Apollo himself told me to watch it.”

                “Sounds awesome.”

                “Not so fast, my dear pessimist! This is almost guaranteed to get rid of the Basilisk poison. Unfortunately, it might also have some negative side effects.”

                Nico cocked an eyebrow. “What side effects, Will?”

                He hesitated. “It’s magic and pharmaceutical you know… So it might also” He took a deep breath and said the next words very fast, as if that would make them less potent. “Wash away her soul.”

                And there went the other eyebrow. “It might _what?_ ”

                “Wash away her soul.”

                And the rest of the plan fell into place for Nico. “Oh. Just that, huh? So I guess you want me to hold on to her soul while you flush the poison out of her?”

                “Yeah! You could do that, right? It probably wouldn’t even be abusing your shadow powers, right?”

                “It wouldn’t.”

                “Then we can pull this off!”

                Nico took a bracing breath. “Yeah.” He said, without enthusiasm.

                Will was enthusiastic enough to cover for both of them. “Then there’s no time like the present, Nico!”

                So as Will positioned the needle at the junction between Chrys’s neck and shoulder Nico sent spectral probes to her soul and pinned it down. Simple, right? No, not quite. Holding onto a soul that was being pulled inexorably towards Hades was like trying to hold down an inflated hot air balloon by yourself. Chrys herself was helping, trying desperately to hold on to life.

                Nico gritted his teeth and spat around them, “Will. The sooner the” he grunted with the effort, “Better.”

                He sent a call for power through the Earth, hoping Thanatos wouldn’t see this little operation as being stiffed of a perfectly good soul. As he struggled to keep his hold he tried to prompt Chrys into thinking about the things and people she loved, using them to stake the balloon down, so to speak. The pull got stronger, like a tornado had just whipped through the Albuquerque balloon festival. He could feel Chrys’s soul slipping through his fingers.

                And then, suddenly, the wind died down. The balloon deflated, and Chrysanthemum’s soul, weakened though it was, stopped fighting for death.

                Nico stepped away from the girl, the blood in his head pounding as bright points of light danced across his vision. Will retrieved the flask of nectar and dribbled some into Chrys’s mouth before looking to Nico. He stretched out a concerned hand, brushing it against the Ghost King’s cheek, and suddenly the dizziness and headache disappeared.

                His voice was soft. “See? Piece of cake.”

                Nico let out a breathless laugh. “For you maybe, Mr. Healer.”

                “You’re a healer now, too Nico! No need to soil the name of the noble profession.” Nico felt a bit gooey and warm inside. Him? A healer? Obviously not. He was a child of Hades, he only destroyed. But then he looked at the daughter of Demeter, whose soul he had just kept from the underworld, and he thought that maybe the title could apply to him after all.

                Will broke into his contemplation, “Guess what?”

                “What?”

                “Healers totally get popsicles after saving people, and I just so happen to have some in the vaccine refrigerator!”

                Nico rolled his eyes, a smile taking over him before he could stop it. “Get me an orange!”

                The two healers sat on the steps leading to the door of the infirmary, Will tapping his cherry popsicle against Nico’s in a toast.

                “I just went in to check on Chrysanthemum, and her heartbeat’s evened out. I think she’s gonna be okay, Nico.”

                “Wow. That’s awesome!” He truly meant it, too.

                “Yeah, Chrys really means a lot to me. She helped me a lot when I was trying to figure some stuff out. She’s a cool chick.”

                Nico had felt their bond on Chrys’s soul. He smiled and nodded. “I’m glad she’s going to be alright.”

                Will held his melting popsicle high in the air, declaring “To Nurse Nico!”

                Nico’s fists clenched. The children of Apollo were _so_ going to pay for that!


	5. Chapter 5

Nico spent the rest of the afternoon working alongside Will. None of his work was as taxing as anchoring Chrys’s soul, it was mostly cutting bandages, hooking up IV bags, and once, prying off a severed octopus tentacle. And watching the half-bloods recover he felt almost… content.

                The son of Apollo often checked in on Chrys, and her health improved by leaps and bounds. Nico couldn’t find it in himself to be jealous of the girl. He took Will for his word, and instead focused on the happy feeling that healing her had given him.

                Will snuck occasional glances at Nico whenever he thought the Ghost King wasn’t watching. Nico could feel the son of Apollo’s gaze on him when his back was turned and his face and ears felt hot whenever he did. That may have also helped curb his jealousy.

                The day passed quickly, and after wolfing down the vegetarian pizza that was for dinner that night he met up with Will by the lake.

                The son of Apollo grinned, standing on the edge of the dock. Nico could’ve sworn he felt Solace’s eyes rove down the length of his body for a moment. He smiled a mischievously.

                “Well, well. You certainly made good on the promise of being distracting.”

                Nico’s face felt hot. He stammered in response, “I-I wasn’t making good on any promise. Th-this isn’t because of you or anything.”

                Will strolled towards him, interlacing their fingers.

                Nico reclaimed his wits. He squeezed Will’s hand, which was large and warm and fit perfectly around his own. “Talk about distracting.” He said, gesturing to their hands.

                “I am disconcertingly hot.” He replied goofily, his smile so wide and goofy that Nico couldn’t help but laugh. And laugh. And laugh.

                Faking offense, Will exclaimed, “I’m not really that ugly, am I?!”

                And no, he certainly was not. The boys walked together, and strolled almost halfway around the lake. Nico may or may not have leaned a little bit into the taller boy as their conversation flowed, punctuated often with laughter and less often with embarrassed blushing. The sun was setting, casting a golden glow over the valley and the lake. Nico had to admit, the camp that he used to resent had never looked more beautiful.

                The view was slightly marred by the giant bronze dragon falling out of the sky.

                Nico was glad Will was with him, or he doubted anyone would believe him. He didn’t even believe it himself. There was Leo Valdez, the dead man himself, flying into Camp Half-Blood astride a mechanical beast with a beautiful girl wrapped around his waist. Will launched into a string of curse words that might have offended Nico normally, but in this case, he agreed wholeheartedly.

                Festus’s wings spread wide, ready for a graceful landing on the beach. Leo whooped and howled, attracting the attention of all the campers outside, and that was most of them. Nico and Will sprang apart, startled, as the magnificent automaton dropped like a stone into the shallow lake, abruptly cutting off its creator’s voice.

                Needless to say, Leo was greeted like the hero he was, wrapped in towels and crowned in laurel wreaths. Calypso, the girl he’d helped escape from Ogygia stood close to Leo, looking around uncomfortably at the cheering crowds. She seemed quite relieved when Chiron led her away to the Big House. Meanwhile, Leo was carried, on the shoulders of the remaining campers, to the fire pit, where the rest of Will’s siblings had begun preparing for that night’s sing-along.

                The whole camp listened raptly as Leo described how he cheated death. As Festus’s crucial role was explained the children of Hephaestus began to stir, leading the dragon over to cabin nine for repairs and motor oil. He told them about how he and Calypso had finally emerged from Ogygia, the island that would be lost to the world forever. They had flown over a balmy sea to Portugal, at which point Piper cuffed Leo on the ear, telling him that he _should have Iris-messaged for Zeus’s sake_. Leo smiled sheepishly, saying that he had to get Calypso used to the mortal world first. A son of Aphrodite whistled at that, and Will covered Nico’s ears before the Italian boy shook him off.

                Calypso returned from the Big House, looking much more comfortable. No storms raged overhead, so it was assumed that the king of gods had no qualms with her return. She sat very close to Leo, and when she looked across the fire pit to where Percy was sitting (cowering, really.) her eyes flickered with their own fire. Nico could feel the resentment on her newly-mortal soul. Nico’s eyes were drawn back to Leo as he gesticulated wildly, telling some hilarious story about frightening an innocent Portuguese housewife. Just like that, the resentment drained away, and later, when the flames had flickered down Nico saw her kiss Percy on the cheek.

                Leo stretched and yawned. He was encouraged by Piper (some may have said mothered. The ones who didn’t value their lives were brave enough to say threatened.) to get some well-needed rest. The question of where Calypso should sleep was quickly resolved. They didn’t go with Leo’s suggestion that she sleep with him in cabin nine. Chiron declared loudly over the slightly scandalized laughter that he had already cleaned out a room in the Big House for her.

                Nobody noticed the children of sunlight and shadow as they sat cuddled together, well overshadowed by Leo’s amazing return and the dying firelight. Nico breathed in the lemony smell that he had come to associate with Will over the last few days and thought, recklessly, that the day was near perfect.

                Or, it was, until the anguished face of the sun god appeared in the flames.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, dears! Sorry, it's been so long! I've been very busy, but I thought it would be better to put out a short chapter now rather than wait until my schedule clears to update a big chapter. Fear not, the story is far from over!

The few remaining campers started in their seats around the fire pit as the beautiful face in their hearth rasped out a few painful words.

                “Trapped.  14 enemies. Children. Beware strife.” Each sentence was bitten out between a labored breath, and though it was hard to see through the monochrome of the fire it was apparent that the handsome god had been beaten brutally. Apollo wheezed pathetically “The rocks weep.”

                And then the fire flickered out completely, leaving small wisps of smoke to wind their way through the starry night. No sooner had the flames been doused than a great thundering came from above the camp as lightning cracked across the still impossibly clear sky. The king of gods was obviously not happy.

                Nico felt Will go rigid beside him.

                The quiet night air was electrically charged. Nobody dared speak. The silence finally shattered as Lacy from Aphrodite raced toward the Big House, her words lingering behind her, saying she was going to go tell Chiron.

                Nico didn’t quite know how to comfort Will, or even if he wanted to be comforted. At last he slid his hand into the older boy’s. Will didn’t respond, his hand laying limp around the Ghost King’s, and it was stupid, but it still hurt.

                Nico was terrible with words, but he tried anyway, “Will-”

                Will cut him off before he could even finish the thought. His voice was cold, as opposed to his usual warm, relaxed, bearing. He spoke to the remaining campers, ignoring Nico, “The Apollo cabin will set out to find our patron as soon as possible.” He glared out over the seats, daring someone to speak up. He rose, letting Nico’s hand drop completely out of his own. His voice was tight with tension. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a quest to prepare for.” On the last word his voice cracked, and Nico could feel the fear beginning to take root in his sun-bright soul.

                As he watched the lanky form retreat towards cabin 7, which was a faded gold during the night, he tried to put himself in Will’s position. This was no quest against an evil force, this was a desperate plea from Apollo to challenge the decree of Zeus, to trespass against the entire Olympian council. He felt a surge of anger towards Apollo, for selfishly endangering his children trying to save his own skin. He knew that Will would go and… oh god. It hit him that he might not come back from this quest. Even if he didn’t get permission, he would go to save his father, and he might be struck down for it. An aching hole opened up behind Nico’s sternum. He was a child of death, but he couldn’t have hated it more than at that moment. He wouldn’t have been able to respect the ancient laws if poor Will Solace crossed the Styx. How could he let that beautiful soul throw his hopes and dreams into the murky water?

                How dare Apollo ask for his children to save him when he _betrayed_ them? As the muttering began in Will’s wake Chiron cantered up with Lacy bouncing on his back, her blonde pigtails flapping around wildly. Nico didn’t look at the horse-man, instead, he rose silently and marched toward the Hades cabin, his body shaking with anger at Apollo and with fear for Will.

                As he reached the door, fashioned out of black stone like the entrance to a mausoleum, he decided that he had to go with Will. A child of Hades was probably the last companion the son of Apollo would want on his mission against Olympus, but he could keep him from death, even if he had to go in secret. The thought of shadow-traveling again made his stomach twist sickeningly, but he pushed the feeling down as he opened the door. If that’s what it took, he would. Will was his… and Nico pondered it for a moment. Friend? Crush? He blushed as the word popped unbidden into his mind… Boyfriend? But no, he wasn’t quite any of those things. And yet, he was Nico’s _something_ , and he deserved to be safe, not to be tossed into yet another immortal grudge match.

                That night Nico dreamt of Tartarus.


	7. Chapter 7

It was just another _gift_ of being a child of the underworld, Nico supposed, that he had experienced Tartarus in all its horrifying glory.

                In his dream he trudged along the river Cocytus, it was a thin river, rushing fast and crashing into rapids constantly, the waters an unnaturally midnight blue. In Nico’s clear vision the river was a vein in Tartarus’s wrist, close to the skin, tantalizingly near Erebos, which called to his soul. Because it was just underneath the surface of the giant god’s skin it was about as good as the pit of primeval chaos could get.

                The wailing of the Cocytus surrounded Nico, and the spongy, flesh-like ground sucked at his feet. The poisonous breath of Tartarus hung in the air above him, blistering his throat and lungs, and yet, this was the _nice_ _part_ of Tartarus. His sleeping mind replicated the shrieks of misery perfectly and the wretched voices harmonized with the ones constantly humming in his head. The river goaded him to jump in, to dissolve and end himself. The message reverberated inside him, and it wasn’t like he hadn’t thought about it before. The chest of The Pit seemed to close in on him, dark and heavy, triggering the claustrophobia he’d developed inside the bronze pithos. Technically, it had come to be after his fight to the Doors of Death, but perhaps Hypnos was feeling merciless that night.

                The sounds of the Cocytus disappeared and Nico found himself trudging through a swamp made entirely of the Phlegethon. This place was Tartarus’s stomach. He was in the same state he’d been when he traveled through here the first time, limping, with multiple poisonous gashes on his leg from a run in with one of Echidna’s poorly formed monstrous children, a fox with the serrated canines of a saber-toothed tiger and a fiery mane. He dreaded returning to this place, because it happened every time he dreamed, and it never got easier to endure. As he tried to wade through the lava, the nerves in his legs so dead from the poison that he could barely feel them as the river of punishment seared against them. He had hoped that by walking through the water he could ward off some of the monsters, which is when the goddess of ghosts, Melinoe, condensed in front of him.

                He croaked through his damaged throat, “Go, minor goddess. I am master of ghosts here.” It sounded pathetic, even to him.

                She just smiled pityingly, “You aren’t the master of anything, _Ghost King_.” She mocked him, and at her words a dark spectral laurel appeared above his head, solidifying on as she uttered her final word, dropping lopsidedly onto his head, where it immediately began to burn. “See?” she tutted, “You’re unfit for a crown, brave little monarch.”

                Nico made tried to ward her with a three-fingered claw from his heart, but her form didn’t flicker. He groaned from the pain and frustration.

                She continued vengefully, “Child, you cannot control your own ghosts, let alone me. You will die before facing your regrets.” She vanished into smoke, figures forming where she used to be.

                They became familiar people. Bianca, Hades, Annabeth, and, of course, Percy. In turn they looked at him in disgust.

                Bianca’s beautiful face twisted into sour ugliness, hissing _“Burden.”_

                Hades looked down with contempt, _“Disappointment. Not worth her sacrifice.”_

Annabeth glared reproachfully, her ethereal hands grasping at the arm of the apparitional Percy. _“Thief.”_ She spat.

                Nico forced himself to look at Percy last. He didn’t look angry. He looked repulsed, disturbed, he radiated lip-curling revulsion. _“Unnatural. Freak. I’d never want you. Nobody does.”_

                The malevolent spirits blocked his path, no matter which way he turned they appeared again in his path. So Nico did what he feared most. He drew his Stygian Iron sword, and faced his shame. The way he did every night, over and over again.

                The dream shifted, and he stood among the tall black trees, the hairs on the great god’s scalp, and he felt the vibrations that the Arai caused. He didn’t touch a single daimon, but felt their curses anyway. And suddenly it was him, trapped inside the giant, Talos, trapped in a bronze coffin and electrocuted, it was him, doused in the acid water of the Styx, and it was him, vaporized by the king of gods, just for protecting his loved ones. Every ounce of pain he’d caused was thrust back onto him. But that was all simply regurgitated. Then something changed. As one of the Arai finally showed herself with a Camp Half-Blood bead necklace clutched in her leathery claw a curse he’d never felt the sting of befell him. A painful death, like a searing hot sunbeam piercing through his heart as some unknown betrayal stung tears from his eyes. His vision blurred as the Arai stood over him, dangling the beads above him. He knew, without knowing, that the curse and the necklace belonged to Will, and he understood, as the dream faded, that his upcoming quest, and Nico, would cause it.

                Nico awoke, screaming in pain, the tears of Will’s curse spilling over the brims of his eyelids.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, everyone! (I said to maybe the 4 friends i've blackmailed into reading this.) Sorry it's been a while, but i have hopes that chapter updates will be more regular and longer! Enjoy!

The sun rose over Long Island Sound that morning, sparkling off the waters of the canoe lake, and washing the whole valley in golden light. A slight breeze ruffled the camp, bringing with it the sweet scent of strawberries. It would have been a beautiful morning, save for the knowledge that a quest _against_ the gods was about to be taken, and it would be a whole new category of danger.

                Will was supposed to leave that day at noon with his two quest mates. The only problem was that he didn’t actually have any quest mates. The horn signaling breakfast was sounded, and the campers streamed out from their cabins in long lines. Nico didn’t look behind him, he knew he was alone. He did, instead, what he always did, he observed.

                This wasn’t the same camp that he had come to 3 years ago. Though there were more campers and more representation in godly parentage the ones who remained well enough to walk after the battle looked worn thin, the lines of delegates reminding Nico of the tattered clothes skeletons in Hades’s palace wore, strung thin enough that the threads might snap at the slightest provocation. The campers that looked most worn were the children of Apollo. Nico found it difficult to sense the souls of large groups of people, but waves of apprehension and fatigue washed over him from the children of the sun god.

                “Well they aren’t very happy campers, huh?” a cheerful voice sounded right next to his ear.

                Nico nearly jumped out of his skin. He turned to look and saw Lou Ellen beside him, the green streak in her black hair bringing out her green eyes. Before Nico could even speak Lou Ellen continued, “Get it? Campers?!”

                It was then that Nico noticed the teacup pig tucked under the crook of her plump arm. “Sure… I get it.” He placated her distractedly. “Hey what ever happened to those legionnaires that you um...” He looked meaningfully at the pig.

                Lou Ellen snorted, waving her hand at him like she was making his comment disappear. “Don’t worry! It’s not one of the Romans, although some of them were real pigs. This!” she proclaimed, holding the pig high in the air, “is Saljjin!”

                Nico tried the word out, “Sai-zeen?”

                Lou Ellen considered his answer for a moment. “Close enough! It’s Korean for well-fed!”

                “You speak Korean?”

                “Well, my father is Korean, so he does! I picked some up just being around him. Saljjin is something he used to call me.”

                Nico looked Lou Ellen up and down. He supposed she was well-fed, but her roundness reminded him of a squashy pillow, warm and comfortable, or maybe that impression came from the way her almond eyes sparkled, making it look like she was always on the verge of a grin. He smiled at the girl.

                “Anyway how are you and Will?” Nico’s smile drooped. For a second he had forgotten that Will was off to risk his life for his selfish immortal father.

                “Why do you say it like that?”

                “Like what? Isn’t it obvious?”

                “What’s obvious?”

                “That you’re dating!”

                Nico’s heart nearly stopped. His cheeks felt hot, “That… what?”

                Lou Ellen looked apologetic. “Oh! Was it supposed to be a secret then? Don’t worry, I won’t tell anybody! But you guys might want to flaunt it a little less!”

                “I- I- _We_ aren’t flaunting anything! We aren’t even a ‘ _we_ ’!”

                Lou Ellen repressed a smile. “Okaaaaaaaaaaay” she sang, “there’s _nothing_ going on between you two!” She followed her statement with a wink, which didn’t assure Nico that she got it.

                He sighed. “Whatever.”

                “Anyway” she continued, “You guys haven’t even really talked to me since the battle! Saljjin can’t be my only friend!”

                Nico’s brow furrowed. It sounded like Lou Ellen had just called him a friend. “Well I was in the infirmary, and Will’s been really busy-”

                She cut him off, “Okay, Mister! But you don’t get to keep Will all to yourself! We all went on that mission together!”

                Nico and Lou Ellen arrived at the dining pavilion, and Nico actually felt disappointed that he couldn’t sit with her. She had a bit of a steamroller personality, but she was a good person, and she’d made him forget about his nightmares, both in his dreams and the one that seemed to be playing out in real life. Lou Ellen went off to sit with her siblings, mumbling to her pig about bacon as she walked away.

                He went to sit alone, at the Hades table, dreading it slightly as he walked over the crack that had _mysteriously appeared_ in the marble floor. As he walked toward his seat he began dreading breakfast for a lot more than the lack of company. Percy Jackson was sitting at his table.

                Nico’s felt nervousness zinging through his body, a sensation of pins and needles prickling at his fingers and toes. He felt none of the attraction he used to, but the fear and shame hadn’t faded away, and when he looked at Percy they came rushing back at him. He figured that since it was his table he should at least try to be hospitable.

                “Hi Percy” he said monotonously which, he supposed, was better than squeaking it out like a mouse that had been stepped on.

                “Hey Nico!”

                “What… exactly… are you doing at my table?”

                “Well, I figured we haven’t really talked in a while. Not since, you know.”

                And Nico certainly did know. He doubted he’d ever forget it. He really didn’t want to discuss it with anyone, especially not with this particular anyone.

                “I just wanted you to know that it’s totally fine and I totally forgive you-”

                On the last word a new emotion washed through Nico. Fear and anxiousness were washed away by steely, bitter anger. “You. Forgive. Me.”

                Percy blanched. “I mean. Not that you have anything to apologize for, I just wanted to say it’s fine and-”

                Nico interrupted him. “I know it is.”

                “You- You what?”

                “I know it’s fine.” He bit out the last word, and it felt appropriate. He didn’t need Percy to tell him it was okay _now_. He needed that years ago. He didn’t need some bumbling boy to tell him that he was okay with Nico’s sexuality. And he really didn’t need Percy-fucking-Jackson to _forgive_ him!

                Percy tried digging himself out of the hole, but he was stuck. “I just thought maybe you wanted-”

                “You thought wrong, Percy. You don’t get to apologize later, okay?” The lift Lou Ellen had given his spirits came crashing down, and the stress of Tartarus and Will’s quest was behind his every word.

                Percy looked down at his lap. “Okay, Nico.”

                Nico didn’t even have to tell him. The son of the sea god got up and left without another word.

                Nico di Angelo collapsed at his own table, his short-lived rage seeping away, leaving him feeling guilty and resentful. He hadn’t acted like that since he was young. He felt bad for being so sharp with Percy, but he had also spoken truthfully. The people in this camp had hurt him. He felt a tap on his shoulder, and he revised the statement in his head, as he looked up into the face of Will Solace. Not _everyone_ in the camp had hurt him.

                “Morning, Angel”, greeted Will, his smile looking genuine despite the task ahead of him.

                “Good morning, Will”

                Will feigned offense. “That’s all I get? A dead man walking and the most you’re gonna say to me is ‘good morning’?

                Nico huffed. “Well you seem much cheerier than you were last night. I suppose you think it’s funny to joke about you dying?”

                Will’s mask faltered a bit. “Come on, di Angelo, I’m just trying to make light of it.”

                Nico thought about his dream. “Don’t, Will. It’s nowhere near light.”

                “We can’t all be as angsty as you, Angel.”

                Nico didn’t respond.

                Will poked him in the side. “This could be the last time I ever eat the harpies’ cinnamon-raisin toast, Nico. Can we just pretend it’s a normal breakfast?”

                The Ghost King’s resolve melted. “I guess, but shouldn’t you be sitting at the Apollo table for your regular breakfast?”

                A shadow passed across Will’s face. “Nah. They’re party-poopers. Besides, haven’t you heard of respect for the dead? I think Chiron will let it slip this time.”

                Something really bad must have happened in the Apollo cabin. But Nico didn’t bring it up. Instead he tried to attempt normal conversation. “So… um… bandage any good wounds lately?” the words left his mouth with a wince. _Stupid_.

                Will snorted a little, trying to contain his snickering. “Not any different from usual, Nurse Nico. Do you pick up all the boys with medical chit-chat?”

                Nico felt that he was blushing to the tips of his ears. “I don’t know.” He stammered, trying to play along, “is it working?”

                Laughter burst from between Will’s lips. “If the goal was to make me laugh you’ve succeeded!”

                Nico elbowed Will in the ribs.

                “Ouch!” complained Will, rubbing at his side. “You’ve gotta stop doing that, Neeks. I still have a bruise from yesterday.”

                “That’s what you get for being insolent, young man.”

                “No, that’s what I get when you’re too short to reach any higher.”

                Somehow, Will mysteriously fell off the bench.

                It was Nico’s turn to laugh, and he did, louder than he could ever remember doing.

                When Will pulled himself up off the floor Nico had tears in his eyes and his stomach ached from his mirth.

                “Laugh it up, di Angelo” grumbled Will, “but you better watch your back. I may strike at any time.”

                It almost would have been intimidating if Will didn’t have a piece of the afore-mentioned cinnamon raisin toast stuck to his butt.

                Chiron trotted down the aisle between the Hypnos and Hades tables and took in the sight of the mighty Apollo’s champion. He shook his head slightly, brushing the toast off with such force Will nearly fell over again. The centaur stood at the head table and tabbed his magic goblet with a grapefruit spoon. The sound rang out across the valley, and the chatter of 150 teenagers cut off abruptly. Every camper looked expectantly at Chiron. All except for Will, who looked straight down at the floor, not meeting anyone’s eyes.

                “Campers, warriors, satyrs, and nymphs, it is time for a decision to be made. A quest has been issued from Phoebus Apollo himself, and as the power of the oracle has been staunched” he laid a hand on Rachel Dare’s shoulder, “the interpretation of this task falls upon Apollo cabin’s senior camper.” Will stepped towards Nico and took his hand before he dared to look up. Chiron was unfazed, “William Solace, have you chosen your companions?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You may have noticed that i've added some Korean in this. I do not speak Korean, and i tried to double-check my translations, but it may be wrong! My apologies in advance, but if someone could point me to a reputable source for translating languages (not google translate, that bastard!) i would super appreciate it! i really want to bring more Korean culture into the story through Lou Ellen, and i don't want to be saying anything incorrectly! Thanks for reading this super-long note. if you read it all the way through you're awesome! Comment below with a name (i'd reccomend not using anyone's real full name) and i might work it into the story!


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's almost Thanksgiving! what are you guys thankful for? i'm thankful for combo pizza, nico di angelo, and my beta reader: Bec!

Will didn’t say a word. He looked at his siblings, his gaze landing briefly on each of their faces, pleading with his eyes that they help him. Not a single child of Apollo met his eyes, and Nico could feel guilt and fear saturating all of their souls.

                The head counselor of Apollo turned his attention to Nico instead. He clenched his jaw, almost as if he was preparing for rejection. The air between them was charged and nobody in the pavilion made a sound, even the flies and birds seemed to have fallen silent. How Nico wished he could return Will’s gaze, but his dream about the _arai_ weighed heavily on his mind. He couldn’t go on the quest knowing that he would cause Will’s demise. He tried to convey an apology to Will with his eyes, and that was his mistake.

                Will’s face broke into a nervous but relieved smile, and announced to Nico’s horror, “I will travel with Nico di Angelo, son of Hades.”

                “Will-” started Nico.

                “And your third companion?” Chiron boomed, drowning out Nico’s voice.

                The son of Apollo cut his eyes to Lou Ellen, and she nodded in understanding. “Lou Ellen Onnan, daughter of Hecate will also quest with me.”

                Nico had never even heard Lou Ellen’s last name. He’d never paid her much attention at all, in fact. Maybe he hadn’t been exactly fair to the Greek campers. She didn’t look nervous or frightened in the slightest, she only turned her head to Chiron and asked, with genuine concern, “Can Saljjin come too?”

                The old centaur looked a bit ruffled by the strange girl’s request. “Yes. I suppose the pig can come.”

                “Ooh, excellent! I’ll have to pack for him, I suppose…” she trailed off, quietly mumbling about the supplies she’d need to pack for maximum swine comfort.

                Nico tried once more to get Will’s attention to no avail, as Chiron trotted to the center of the pavilion, where the bronze braziers for godly sacrifices smoldered away.

                Chiron tapped his spoon on the side of his glass again, praying in ancient Greek that they would be successful on their quest. Nico hoped he wasn’t praying to Zeus, or they might get struck down as soon as they left camp. He spoke about brave heroes, sacrifice, and somewhat uncomfortably tacked on _protection for the swine_ to the end. Ironically, upon finishing his benediction he scraped a platter of bacon into the central brazier, which burned brightly as the eternal flame within consumed the meat.

                Nico sent his own silent wish to his father. He’d never really prayed to him before, preferring not to ask favors of the lord of the dead. Now he channeled all of his emotions into his request, thinking _“Father, please don’t take Will. He doesn’t deserve to die yet. If I can claim any connection to you, if Mother meant anything to you, please, just protect him.”_

                He rose from the stone bench, carrying a plate full of pancakes to the line of braziers. He sloughed his breakfast into the embers of the farthest brazier. Perhaps a pomegranate would be more appropriate, but he didn’t have any handy, and besides, maple syrup was one of his favorite new delicacies.

                For a single moment he smelled freshly turned earth and the aromatic smell of poplar flowers, reminding him of the palace garden in Erebos. He could only hope that meant Hades had heard him. Then again, perhaps the god of death just really liked chocolate chip pancakes.

                He quickly exited the dining pavilion, heading straight back to the Hades cabin.

                He straightened the covers of his bunk haphazardly, trying to ignore the little bats printed on his sheets. He gathered together the meager amount of clothing he kept in the wardrobe at the back of the cabin and packed it into a backpack. He spent a ridiculous few minutes debating on which shirts he should bring, wondering which ones Will would like the most, until he gave up, scooping an armful of black cloth up and dumping it all into his pack on top of his black jeans. He did not have a whole lot of variety when it came to his wardrobe.

                He gathered together a few toiletries and walked over to the shower block, not particularly caring about the schedule that was technically determined during inspection. He had bigger problems to worry about. He rolled them over in his mind. He had to go on this quest with Will, but he shouldn’t be going at all, if he was going to cause him some kind of harm.

                 Even in the face of this particularly good reason he couldn’t imagine telling Will he wouldn’t help him. Who else would go? It didn’t seem like any of his cabin mates were going to volunteer. In fact, that was unusual too. Apollo was also their father… Why would they leave him to suffer in… wherever it was that he was imprisoned. Something had definitely changed in their moods between last night and breakfast. And where was Apollo even being held? Would Zeus keep him in North America, or would they have to travel back to the ancient lands?

                At the thought of crossing over the _mare nostrum_ again Nico shivered involuntarily. He couldn’t go back there. It was too dangerous, and it held too much power over him. The past few days he’d felt safe and nearly normal, but his dreams stirred fear inside of him. He didn’t think he could go anywhere near Greece _or_ Tartarus without snapping. The thought of returning to the underworld, with the gaping entrance to the pit close enough that he could feel its gravity affecting him was unbearable.

                So lost was he in his thoughts he didn’t even notice that he’d arrived at the showers until he slammed up against something very warm and fleshy. He focused on the thing in front of him. It was a chest. A very bare, well-muscled chest. He felt his face flush as he stumbled back, his eyes trained on the ground.

                “Sorry” he mumbled

                “It’s okay, Angel.” Replied the amused voice of Will Solace.


	10. Chapter 10

If it hadn’t been nearly 10 AM Nico would have shadow-traveled away immediately and never come back. But he didn’t get to hide away in Canada this time (it had happened once before). His cheeks flamed red and he immediately clapped a hand over his eyes.

                He could hear Will laughing, not the laugh he loved but a nervous, embarrassed laugh. “Why did you cover your eyes, grandpa?”

                “Why are you standing around half-naked?!”

                “In case you hadn’t noticed, it is the shower block.”

                “Oh, sure! So I guess you should just walk around like…” Nico couldn’t help himself, peeking through his fingers to look at Will, “Like some kind of incubus!”

                “Some kind of _what_?”

                Nico blushed further, “You know… an incubus.”

                “Are you speaking Italian or something, Angel?”

                “We have some in Erebos… They’re demons of seduction.”

                Will’s smile was so wide it probably could have split his face in two. “You find me seductive, di Angelo?” he asked, striking a ridiculous faux-raunchy pose against the door.

                Nico ducked underneath his arm, his towel clutched to his chest tightly as he tried not to die of embarrassment.

                “Aw, Nico, don’t be like that! I’ll put on a shirt!”

                Nico stood in front of the sink, composing himself and ignoring Will, which was something he was getting really good at. He felt it couldn’t have gotten worse. That was, until Jason poked his head into the shower block.

                He wasn’t carrying any shower stuff, and he had a quiver of arrows slung across his back. Nico assumed he was supposed to be at archery, but he’d probably heard Will yelling and decided to spy. His eyes widened behind his new glasses. Apparently, Will had gone back to his cabin to change, walking across the field in only his shower towel. How had Nico _not_ noticed that before?

                “Nico?” said Jason tentatively

                The son of Hades sighed internally, “Yes, Jason.”

                “Were you and Will just…?”

                “Gods no!”

                Jason looked sheepish. “Sorry, Nico. A little birdy told me that you might have a little crush on Solace.”

                “Well, Piper is more perceptive than you, Sparky.”

                Jason feigned offense, “Hey! I never said it was Piper!” Nico pegged him with the death stare. “Okay, so it was Piper. But really, do you like him?”

                “Jason, I really can’t.”

                “What do you mean you can’t? Nico I’m pretty sure he likes you too! You can go for it.”

                “I said. I. Can’t.”

                His face softened, he tried to touch Nico’s arm, but the son of Hades shook him off. “I promised I’d protect you, Nico. Nobody’s going to make fun of you guys.”

                And it wasn’t fair, but Nico had his second temper tantrum of the morning. He must be breaking some kind of world record. “It’s not about that, Jason! I can’t get close to him! I can’t even go on this stupid quest! I know everything’s worked out perfectly for you and Piper and I know Leo’s back but the world hasn’t stopped turning! If I go with Will…” he braced his hands on either side of the sink, breathing heavily. He looked at the mirror in front of him from underneath his bangs, and saw Jason standing behind him. He caught the blond boy’s eye in the glass.

                “I’m sorry, Nico.” And he sounded sincere. How was Nico supposed to be mad at the son of Jupiter when he went and apologized like he meant it?

                Nico straightened up and looked at Jason. “No, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have snapped.”

                Jason had sympathy plain on his face, but he didn’t say anything pitying or condescending. Maybe he was more socially adept than Nico gave him credit for. “What is it that’s going to happen if you go with Will?”

                Nico thought about Will’s fate and he couldn’t choke out the words. His throat felt tight and swollen, his nose was running and the sight of Jason before him blurred through tears. Suddenly, the older boy’s arms were wrapped around him and Nico found himself suffocating on a mouthful of slightly sweaty t-shirt.

                Jason released Nico after a few moments. He held the boy at arm’s length, saying, “Visit me when you’re done packing for the quest. I think I have something that will help you.” He left, and Nico was alone, sniffling in the shower block.

                He finished packing an hour before they were to leave and he still didn’t know what to do about his dream. He doubted Jason could help, but he trudged over to cabin one anyway, not bothering to knock on the bronze doors.

                He stepped into a cold temple with high ceilings and a giant statue of Zeus in the middle, with his lightning bolt raised toward the door like he was going to smite Nico on the spot. Being a child of Hades in a place sacred to Zeus felt _wrong_ and he could feel electricity racing across his skin like a warning from the lord of the skies, “Behave while you’re here, or you’ll get a taste of _real_ lightning.”

                Jason walked out into the central worshipping-area from an alcove that used to be for a brazier and found Nico rooted to the spot in front of his father’s statue. “Creepy, huh?” the electric tingle on Nico’s skin intensified.

                “I don’t think it likes me much. Let’s not insult him while we’re here, or I might get fried.”

                Jason nodded pensively. “I don’t know what exactly it is that’s bothering you about the quest, but I do have something for you. It showed up at the foot of Hippie Zeus a few days ago, but I don’t think he sent it. I think it was Hera.”

                The crazy queen of the heavens. Great. “What did she send you, Jason?”

                The son of Jupiter produced two small vials from his jeans pocket, each one filled with a neon green liquid. “These. They’re from Medea’s potion stash, which should have been destroyed last winter, but the gods have proven that they can visit its memory, even if it is destroyed. They came with a short note. It just said ‘Take what is his and he will have what is yours’. I think you can switch states with someone else as long as you both drink it. I was thinking maybe you could get Apollo to drink it and switch someone else into his prison.”

                But Nico had stopped listening after Jason read the note. Suddenly he saw a way, he saw a world that was better off, a world with Will Solace and without Nico di Angelo.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! sorry it's been a while, but unfortunately: school. however! finals are over so hopefully my workload will be light enough that i can write and post weekly.

Nico walked towards Thalia’s tree, the vials clinking together in his clenched fist, almost like a clock. He could imagine they were eating up the seconds of his life, counting down to… He forced the train of thought away and focused instead on Jason, who was walking beside him.

                “Thanks for the help, Jason.” He pushed the sentence out from between clenched teeth. There. It wasn’t so hard to act normal.

                The son of Jupiter had a ridiculously sappy look on his face when he replied, “No problem, Nico. Anything to help a friend.”

                “Help” repeated Nico bitterly in his head. Yes, Jason was going to be of great help, but not to Nico.

                He must have let his façade crack a little too much on that thought, because suddenly Jason’s voice changed, dripping with concern. “Nico, what’s wrong? Is this about what you told me in the bathroom?”

                Nico collected himself, “Nothing’s wrong, Grace. What’s wrong with that mushy look on your face?”

                “I was just thinking about how I asked you to trust me. Don’t look now, Nico, but you might have actually done what I asked.”

                “Ew. Why are you getting all soft on me?”

                “Sorry, ice queen.” Jason said sarcastically.

                They hiked up towards the hill where Chiron the centaur waited, and lapsed into a silence that Jason would have described as “pouty”. As they walked over the crest of the hill the son of Hades almost did a double take. Crowded around Chiron and Argus, who was holding three duffel bags on one well-muscled arm, were more campers than he’d ever seen gathered to see off questers.

                As he and Jason walked toward the commotion a small bubble of the people he knew grouped around him. It wasn’t a lot of people, but he felt a fond smile creep across his face none the less. Annabeth, Piper, Leo, and Jason were there (Percy was standing at Chiron’s side and avoiding Nico’s eyes.) as well as some campers Nico never would have expected. Among them were Alabaster Torrington, Clovis from Hypnos cabin, and the girl he and Will had healed in the infirmary the day before, Chrys. Nico was afraid he would have nothing to say to the assembled people, but he needn’t have worried. Everyone had some message of encouragement for him, some anecdote that he had already forgotten, or, in Jason’s case specifically, a very strained embrace. The only person who stayed silent was Chrys.

                She had a wistful look on her face, and simply nodded to Nico, maybe in thanks for his help or simply for respect of his quest. At last, the punk girl spoke, quietly enough that only Nico could hear her over the din, “You take care of him, di Angelo.” She turned on one heel and hobbled away before she could hear Nico’s whispered response, “I will.”

                He watched her progress towards the much larger group of people, past Lou Ellen who was mainly surrounded by the youngest campers and some older girls from the Hecate cabin, and over to the mob surrounding Will Solace.

                The healer wove effortlessly through the crowd, greeting his many friends, who apparently made up 75% of the camp. He clapped a tall Hispanic boy on the shoulder, “Dmitri! Be good to Amanda, you hear?” Amanda, who was the short girl standing at his side grinned at Will. He drifted to another group of friends. “Alicia!” He exclaimed exuberantly, giving a daughter of Demeter a hug before quickly releasing her and wading over to his other friends. Their names began to slur together as he socialized with ever more of them. Scott, Wyatt, Morgen, Bailey, Phillip, Dakotah. He didn’t seem bothered at all by the death mission looming over him, and smiled and charmed his way through every interaction, but when Lucas Wrayson from Apollo came up to him silently and slipped something into his hand without a word his character faltered. A girl from Iris came up to wish him luck and just as quickly as it had vanished his composure reappeared.

                “Nico?” said Annabeth.

                Nico realized he’d been staring. He turned back to face his friends, and Jason gave him a _very_ subtle wink.

                Leo broke in, “Jason, is something wrong with your eye, man?” he hefted a wrench in one hand contemplatively, like he might bonk Jason on the head with it and fix his eye twitch.

                Piper grabbed Leo’s arm and eased the wrench out of his hand before he could do any serious harm to Jason. “So Nico,” she intervened smoothly, “we just wanted to give you something before your quest.”

                She looked with significance at Annabeth who added, “Percy found this a while ago, after you left camp the first time. He- er… We- thought you’d want to have it.” She pressed a small lump of metal into his open palm. The metal should have been cold, but instead was warm to the touch, as if it had its own little heart that pumped blood through it. Without looking down he knew what it was. In one hand he held the vials that would be his end, and in the other he had the statuette that had been his sister’s.

                He felt his eyes fill with tears and blinked them back, so they ran hot down his throat instead. Piper reached out a hand to him and touched his shoulder gently. “Good luck, Nico.” And suddenly he was caught up in a tangle of arms as the whole group converged on him.

                “Nico di Angelo” said an authoritative voice from above them. _Thank the gods_ , thought Nico, _saved by the centaur_. “It is time to begin your quest.” Lou Ellen and Will flanked Chiron, and Nico broke away from his friends, slipping their gifts into his jeans pockets.

                The questers walked silently together, leaving Chiron at the base of Thalia’s tree and continuing down the hill to the road quietly. Nobody on the top of the hill spoke, and the absence of their sound was more deafening than its presence. They stopped at the asphalt and Nico looked up and down the street for one of the camp’s strawberry vans.

                “Well,” said Will, producing a key ring from the backpack Argus had given to him at the boundaries of camp, “time for a good, old-fashioned road trip!”

                The son of Hades was surprised. “You can drive?”

                “Yep!” replied Will proudly, “And there’s my car!”

                Nico looked down the street again, and his eyes settled upon a chunk of rust by the side of the road that he’d assumed was just discarded junk. But no, Will walked over to the car, and caressed its tetanus-inducing body, while inserting the key to the front door.

                “I call shot gun!” said Lou Ellen.

                Nico wasn’t quite as enthusiastic. “There is no way _in hell_ that I am getting in that death trap.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A big thank-you and a slightly sloppy kiss to my lovely beta-reader, acacia!


	12. Chapter 12

Nico got in the death trap. And he was _not_ happy about it. “Will,” he complained from the cramped back seat, “there were safer cars around when I was born. Come to think of it, this car might actually be older than me.”

                Will patted the dashboard affectionately, “It’s okay, Lucille, Nico’s just cranky because his shotgun-calling skills are terrible.”

                “You named it?!”

                Lou Ellen got into the act, rubbing the stick shift in front of her lovingly. “You’ve gotta call her a ‘she’, Nico. You’ll hurt Lucille’s feelings otherwise.”

                Will looked at him in the rear view mirror. “Lou Ellen!” he said delightedly, “We’re making a vein in his forehead pulse!”

                Lou Ellen twisted in her seat to look at Nico with concern. “You should go get your blood pressure checked out. It’s dangerous to get so worked up.”

                Nico practically exploded. Of _course_ Will would be the least serious quester. And of _course_ Nico would get stuck on this quest with him where only he knew what was going to happen in the end.

                Will glanced over his shoulder. “Oh, Nico, don’t pout!”

                “I’m not pouting!”

                Will just nodded placatingly in the most frustrating way.

                The son of Hades decided to change the subject. “So, what did your cabin give you before you left?”

                The joking atmosphere drained away as Will fell silent in the wake of his question. At last, the healer held out his closed hand and dumped its contents on the center of the dashboard.

                Lou Ellen spoke first, “It’s a mummy.”

                “Well, technically, it’s just a mummified _foot_.” Replied Will.

                “Will” ventured Nico, “Why do you have a mummified foot?”

                “It’s a crow’s foot.”

                Nico almost rolled his eyes. Like that explained anything. “Okay… Why do you have a mummified crow’s foot?”

                “It’s supposed to guide me somehow… It’s one of my father’s sacred animals. It’s going to lead me to where he’s imprisoned, I think.”

                Lou Ellen snatched up the crow foot. She held it for a moment and mumbled, “Well, that’s strange.”

                “I know it is!” said Will exasperatedly, “But it’s not like I can send it back to whoever made it appear on my _pillow_ and ask for a GPS or something! And you know what’s really stressful? Finding a gross leathery _foot_ on your bed like the tooth fairy left-”

                “No, no, no.” She shushed him. “That happens in my cabin a lot. I’m talking about the energy associated with the foot.” She handed it to Nico, who took it gingerly. As soon as he made contact with its dehydrated surface he felt it, an ancient energy woven through the lifeline of the bird. He tried to focus in on the source of the energy and a sharp pain stabbed through his head, behind his eyes. The son of Hades dropped the foot like it had suddenly caught on fire.

                “Whoa, there, Death boy.” fretted Will, “Maybe don’t get all swoony on us.”

                “Did you feel it?” asked Lou Ellen.

                “I certainly felt something. I tried to explore it, but I think some force doesn’t want me to know what it is.”

                “Right.” Said Will. “So what are you two talking about and why is Nico fainting in Lucille’s back seat?”

                “There’s a strange aura of ancient power associated with your mummified foot. It doesn’t seem to be part of the crow’s lifeline, but I don’t know. Nico would probably be able to separate the ancient power and its life.” Explained Lou Ellen.

                Will looked back at Nico, horror pulling at the features on his face. Nico felt his stomach sink as if it were full of lead. Will was disgusted. Their… whatever it was… was fleeting, and Will had probably figured out how awful it was that a son of Hades was accompanying him on this quest and in general. “You can see people’s lives?”

                “More like their life forces” muttered Nico. “I could probably track down the events that shaped that creature’s life the most.”

                Will pulled a hand to his chest protectively, like he was guarding his life force from Nico. “C-could you see mine, y’know, yesterday?”

                “No. I wasn’t looking. I don’t want to invade anyone’s privacy.” He answered, cheeks burning in shame.

                Will looked greatly relieved, all traces of fear gone from his face. Like he wasn’t revolted by Nico’s underworld powers, but was worried about some other thing.

                “If you can separate the two is it possible I could assist you in finding out what the power is?” wondered Lou Ellen.

                Nico shifted uncomfortably, looking at the foot the lay on Lucille’s dirty blue/green/brown carpet. “Probably. But I’d need your help, for sure.”

                “Nico, that’s awesome! The quest could be so much easier!” exclaimed Will.

                Nico didn’t reply. The son of Hades raised his hand up to the window, and it almost looked transparent. He didn’t know how exploring the ancient aura would affect him.

                Upon Nico’s silence Will turned around to look at the boy and saw him contemplating his hand grimly. “Oh.” said Will. “Nico, if this is going to drain you are definitely not allowed to do anything of the sort.”

                “No, Will. It’s okay. I can do it for the quest.”

                The son of Apollo seemed about to protest when Saljjin squeaked from the front seat. Lou Ellen spoke before Will got the chance. “Saljjin’s right, Will. I can lend some spiritual energy to Nico. Saljjin has offered to help, too! We won’t let him get hurt.”

                “The pig can help you?”

                “Well of course”, she tickled the swine under its chin, “He’s not just a pretty face.” She unbuckled her seatbelt and, with the pig under one arm, she climber over the center console and sat down next to Nico in the back seat. “No time like the present,” she declared, and before Nico could get a word in edgewise she placed her cold hand on his arm, and a rush of energy transferred from her into Nico. The energy flushed through him in pins-and-needles, like his entire body wasn’t getting enough oxygen.

                He took a deep breath and grabbed the foot from the floor. He ignored the overwhelming presence of foreign power and instead focused on the life attached to the mummified claw. Images of a much older time flashed in front of his eyes. Apollo stood in front of a beautiful white bird, and sent a burst of rage towards it that singed every single feather black. He saw a young woman in a veil trapped in a dingy prison, and he saw his friends and sister walking across the small island of Delos towards the twin gods.

                Lou Ellen removed her hand and Nico dropped the crow’s talons immediately. He looked over at the girl next to him, who removed her other palm from Saljjin’s side and said a quiet thank you to the pig.

                Nico tried to blink away the image of the pure white bird that lingered behind his eyelids.

                “Nico” said Lou Ellen gently, “What did you see?”

                He looked down in awe at the shriveled foot in front of him. “I saw its life, alright. This is the original.”

                Will glanced at the scene in the back seat. His eyes widened in understanding, “Wait. This is really…”

                “Yes.” Confirmed Nico. “This is the first crow.”


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys! So, i didn't acknowledge this in my last update, but there are like, over 7,000 hits on this story??? this is ridiculous guys. that probably 14,000 eyeballs unless a few of you only have one eye. even if you have one eye i hope you can read this well enough to know that i am so grateful for you all! thank you for making it 7,000!

Nico expected some more awe. Maybe a little bit of interest in the millennia-old mummified artifact. What he got instead was Will saying, “Oh _great_.”

                “What’s so bad about the foot?” wondered Lou Ellen.

                Will gripped the steering wheel tightly and sighed. “Like any good myth, it’s not a happy story.”

                “I’ve never actually heard the full story.” mentioned Nico. “It’s such a creepy bird I just assumed it had to do with Hades.”

                “I don’t know. Maybe Hades and Apollo share custody or something. Long story short, crows used to be white. Apollo assigned a crow to watch over one of his girlfriends, but she got married on its watch. He was so angry that the crow didn’t report back or whatever that he appeared in his godly form and charred all its feathers, which is why crows are black.”

                Nico eyed the foot. “So, your typical uplifting Greek parable, huh?”

                “It could be worse.” observed Lou Ellen. “I’ve been a crow before, they have it better than pigeons, for sure.”

                “Uh…” Will craned his neck to look at the girl. “Why were you turning into a bunch of birds?”

                “We _were_ playing Truth or Dare, after all! What’s a good dare without some transfiguration?”

                “Is that typical for the Hecate cabin?”

                “Only on some nights. There’s also whittling, hex-crafting, and bridge on alternating days!”

                They bantered back and forth for a while, and Nico continued to stare at the severed limb on Lucille’s dirty carpeting. And it twitched. “Guys…” he tried to alert his quest mates.

                They spoke over him, drowning him out:

                “I don’t care _how_ funny it is! You can’t enchant cards to go up there! I’ve had at _least_ 3 cases in the last month!”

                “It was an experiment for the sake of magic advancement! Plus, they’re all cheating! I can tell!”

                “Guys!” he interrupted, louder this time.

                “One sec, Angel. I’ve got a bone to pick with-”

                “Fine, Solace. But your mummy claw’s moving around.”

                That shut Will up satisfactorily. Lou Ellen’s eyes dropped to the foot, which was hovering an inch above the ground, rotating rapidly in a circle. Her eyes narrowed, and her fingertips began to glow faintly. She cupped her hands around the talons, and it floated above her magic-charged palms. Saljjin squeaked angrily at the appendage in her grasp.

                “What the hell is happening with that?” probed Will.

                Lou Ellen sniffed proudly. “I’ll tell you if you promise not to yell at me anymore.”

                His face softened. “Sorry, Lou Ellen. I’m a little stressed. What’s happening?”

                “I think it has a spell attached to it. It’s going to navigate us, but you have to be the one who holds it.”

                Will’s face twisted in disgust. He offered his hands to Lou Ellen, who dropped the member unceremoniously into his grip. Immediately it stopped its rotations, and pointed directly to their left. “I guess the spooky death claw wants us to go to that way.” said Will.

                They drove until it was dark. By the time the claw began to spin again Nico had heard enough of Will’s singing that he was ready to destroy all of his CDs or, better yet, shadow travel to SoHo and destroy Justin Timberlake.

                “The claw spinning again means that we’re wherever it wants to take us.” explained Lou Ellen.

                Nico peered out the dark windows. All he saw was a wide slow-moving river at the edge of a field and a grove of dark trees. “It must not have much to show us.”

                “No… I think it does. As long as those trees are what I think they are.” said Will contrarily.

                They got out of the rusty car and walked across the field to the trees. Nico sniffed the air, and smelled a familiar scent. One that brought back memories of Persephone’s garden in the Underworld. Will got up close to the tree, wrapping his hands around the trunk and looking at its trunk carefully while Lou Ellen and Nico stood at a distance, watching him.

                “Yep.” He finally confirmed. “These are poplar trees.”

                “Oh!” exclaimed Nico. “That’s why they seemed so familiar!”

                Lou Ellen’s brow furrowed. “Why would you recognize them?”

                Nico deflated. “There are a lot of poplars in… my stepmother’s garden” he mumbled.

                Will quirked his eyebrow at the son of Hades, his eyes sparkling mischievously. “Something else Apollo and Hades share. I never realized how much they had in common.”

                Nico cut his eyes away from the son of Apollo and blushed.

                “Poplars were supposedly created by the gods from the beautiful sisters of Phaethon. He was a son of Apollo who was killed by Zeus. They mourned for him at the site where he fell to the Earth for so long that the Olympians took pity on them and turned them into unfeeling trees. The sap falls in droplets just like tears.”

                “What happened to Phaethon?” interjected Lou Ellen.

                Before Will could answer her Nico responded, his eyes fixed on the figure behind the healer. His hand slowly drifted to the pommel of his stygian iron sword. “He fell to Earth from the sun chariot, he burned as he plummeted to the ground.”

                Will looked surprised. “Yeah. How did you know that?”

                The ghost behind Will Solace solidified, becoming visible to the other campers. He spoke in a rasping voice, as air whistled past a throat that was broken and scorched. “Because your consort can see _me_.”

                As soon as the ghost spoke, Nico drew his sword and the specter glowed with greater intensity. The hilt of his sword grew unbearably hot. He dropped his weapon, and it settled in a puff of dirt. The ghost dimmed. “I am _not_ here for a fight.” He floated between the three friends and looked at Will. “I am here to offer you a warning.”

                The ghost drifted to the Ohio River, around which the poplar trees were clustered. He gazed despondently at it. “I was struck from the sun chariot long ago, by Zeus. I fell into a river near my childhood home. My poor sisters found my body, broken and burned. They grieved for me until they were so close to death that the Olympians decided to _spare_ them by turning them into trees.” Anger fluttered through the spirit. “ _Spare them_.” he sneered. “All Zeus did was preserve them forever in their anguish. They became a warning. Do not reach too high. Do not dare cross the Lord of the Skies, or you shall pay the ultimate price.” Each of his words was hissed out of a throat so damaged and destroyed that his story could not be disbelieved. He was proof of Zeus’ wrath. “My father tried to defy the King of Gods, and I was struck down for it.”

                He turned back to Will, who stood underneath the poplar still, transfixed. “I know you seek to follow another of our father’s foolhardy quests. Nothing but tragedy can come from it.”

                Nico didn’t want to hear any more, and most importantly, he didn’t want Will to hear anymore. He raised his hand, and concentrated on the energy within him. “Menace.” He intoned powerfully, “You will leave this place. Return to Erebos.” He used all the force of his will against the apparition, forcing it to leave.

                It didn’t. Instead, the ghost of Phaethon turned on him, burning with molten anger. “DO YOU THINK I AM THE MENACE HERE, CHILD OF SHADOW? I KNOW MANY THINGS. MY FATHER WAS GOD OF PROPHECY. I TRIED TO WARN MY BROTHER OF THE DANGERS AHEAD, BUT I CANNOT SAVE HIM FROM WHAT YOU WILL BRING.”

                Nico didn’t respond. He threw all of his energy against the spirit, calling up more power from his father’s realm below. The shade flickered and disappeared. The son of Hades felt his knees weaken, and he swayed once, listening as Will and Lou Ellen’s concerned voices faded. He landed heavily on the dirt, and unconsciousness overtook him.


	14. Chapter 14

When Nico regained consciousness a wet _something_ was pressed up against his cheek. He opened his eyes a fraction and looked right into the small brown eyes of Saljjin the pig, who was nuzzling his slimy snout _right against Nico’s face._ Nico let out an involuntary shriek of surprise.

      “Oh. He’s awake. Good job, Saljjin!” praised Lou Ellen, somewhere off to his right.

      Nico sat up, wiping his cheek, and tried to get his bearings. Judging by the stars, which were now out in full force, it was very late at night. It seemed that his friends had simply walked back to where they’d parked the car near the Ohio River. About ten feet from where he was, they had built a small fire that crackled cheerily. Lou Ellen and Will sat near the fire, the girl caressing her beloved pig and the son of Apollo looking straight into the fire and dedicatedly ignoring Nico.

      Silently, Nico rose and walked over to the fire, sitting near Lou Ellen. She offered him some dry crackers, which Nico ate ravenously. His legs shook from lack of energy. He expected one of his quest mates to speak first, he certainly wasn’t a social butterfly, but they both remained quiet. Their swine companion snuffled around behind Lucille.

      Lou Ellen seized that moment to make a graceful exit. “I should check on Saljjin.” she said bluntly. She jumped up, glared at Will, and walked over to find her friend.

      Likely prompted by Lou Ellen’s frank signaling, Will heaved a sigh and spoke to Nico, though he kept his gaze trained on the flames. “You were talking in your sleep the whole way over here, di Angelo.”

      “The whole way over…?” Nico trailed off uncertainly.

      “Well, yeah.” huffed Will. “I couldn’t just leave you laying in that clearing, and Lou was carrying that pig.”

      Nico blushed at the implication that Will had to carry him back to the car.

      He continued, “And I felt how thin you are, Nico.” He slowly grew more irritated. “Why did you use your underworld powers, Nico?! Do you have some sort of death wish?”

      “I just wanted to get rid of that ghost-” the son of Hades tried to break in.

      “Why? That could have been a good lead for us!” Will was becoming truly agitated now, his hand reaching up to the base of his throat, twisting his camp necklace tightly around his finger.

      “Listen, Will-”

      “He was warning me… What if I fail, Nico? I know how this could end. I don’t-” Tears had gathered in Will’s eyes, glinting in the firelight. He tried to push out the next words, but couldn’t. Nico knew what they’d be anyway. _“I don’t want to die.”_ How was he supposed to tell Will that he didn’t want that either? How could a child of Hades comfort someone, tell them death wouldn’t be so bad? That it’s the natural order? If he tried every word would reek of hypocrisy. Nico had felt too much pain from death in his life. It had shaped him, and he struggled against the idea that Will would be lost, just like his sister and mother.

      Nico simply shifted himself next to Will, wrapping an arm hesitantly around the taller boy. He expected Will to stiffen, but instead he leaned into the Ghost King. As he looked at Will, who was pressed against his side he felt a pang of guilt, thinking of the small vials he’d left inside his pack in the trunk of the car. He could swear that he could hear them clinking together the entire time they had driven that day. They would save this scared boy from his greatest fear. But for the first time, Nico wondered what effect his death would have on Will, or even Lou Ellen. He might do something stupid trying to save him. Then Nico would just have to come back and haunt the son of Apollo. He let out a clipped laugh at that thought.

      “What’s so funny, Angel?”

      “Nothing.” Nico said, clipped and cold.

      Will sat up and twisted his body to look at Nico. “Why are you so snappy all of the sudden?” His tan hand clenched around Nico’s clammy wrist.

      “I told you, nothing.” lied Nico. “I’m just stressed.”

      Will scrutinized his face. “You’re lying.” He decided.

      Nico’s shock must’ve shown clearly on his visage.

      “Ha.” Said Will in triumph. “Never lie to a healer. I can feel your pulse speed up when you do.”

      The Ghost King composed himself, and didn’t say a thing, looking straight ahead with a neutral expression.

      “What are you hiding, huh, Angel?”

      Then, thank the gods, Nico was struck with a brilliant, terrible idea. “That wasn’t why my pulse was speeding up…” He fibbed, trying to channel the embarrassed feeling from earlier. Luckily, with Will around it wasn’t ever far away.

      Will got into the act. “Oh, really? Why was your pulse speeding up then, huh, Angel?” he wondered teasingly.

      Nico swallowed. He didn’t answer the question. Instead, he leaned forward and pressed his lips against Will’s. Will’s eyes widened, before he relaxed, leaning into Nico as he reciprocated. Deep inside his core Nico thought giddily “ _My first kiss”_ while another part of him screeched in disgust and fear. They broke apart, and Nico breathed heavily from exhilaration and fright.

      Will looked fondly at him. “I take it back, di Angelo. You’re no liar.”

      Nico swallowed hard. His lips tasted like blood. Like Will’s blood. He spoke, though, and it was honest. “I really wanted to do that. You’re just so annoying.”

      “You say annoying like it’s a compliment, Angel.”

      “HAH!” came an exuberant voice from behind them. They both sprang apart, but they couldn’t erase what had just happened. “I knew it!” shouted Lou Ellen. “I told you that you guys were being super obvious!”

      The two of the couldn’t look at each other for more than a few seconds over the course of the night or Lou Ellen would start nudging Saljjin with her elbow. In the morning as they got into the death trap that was Lucille, she loudly proclaimed “I’m sitting shotgun, Nico. You guys may be getting all cuddly, but I still called it!”

      They drove away from the river with the crow foot guiding them and Nico tried to ignore the incriminating clink of the potion bottles in his head.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> well, that wasn't exactly the first kiss you all probably wanted... tune in next week for: businessghost Writes More Sad Things.


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi! sorry it's been a while, i was really sick and if i had tried to write in my fever-state there's no telling what horrors whould have occurred. anyway! here's a new chapter, and in light of its contents i would like to make a pre-apology to funyuns. i love them, and they should know that.

They drove through the rest of Ohio, crossing over into Indiana around 1 O’ clock. Nico decided that road trips were _very_ overrated. Maybe it was the sun constantly in his eyes, maybe it was the wheezing of Lucille’s engine, or perhaps it was the cheesy road trip games Lou Ellen and Will kept playing. But the experience didn’t really fit Nico’s idea of fun.

                Finally, they got out of the car at a rest stop 80 miles south of Indianapolis. The son of Hades was surprised to find that he was hungry. It seemed that since his quest with Reyna and Hedge he’d developed the appetite of a teenage boy.

                Will returned to the picnic table Lou and Nico were sitting at triumphantly, victoriously holding a bright yellow bag of chips over his head. It had an arrow stuck through the top. “I have hunted down some provisions!”

                Lou Ellen clapped enthusiastically for the great hunter. Nico squinted up at the bag. “Funyuns? What are those?”

                Will gasped, “You don’t know about the glory of Funyuns?! I am shocked. Simply shocked.” He set the bag reverentially down on the table. “Funyuns are only the most authentic representation of the great American onion ring as has ever existed.”

                “I’m Italian.” Commented Nico dryly.

                “And do you know what the U.S.’s main export to Italy is? Funyuns… Probably.”

                Nico snatched up the bag and plucked out the arrow. He tore it open and shook a few of the puffy rings into his palm. Playing along with Will, Lou Ellen propped her chin on her hands and watched Nico closely as he popped one into his mouth. His reaction was a spectacle, but maybe not the one they were expecting.

                “That is disgusting!” he spluttered, his face twisting up. “That doesn’t taste like an onion at all! It doesn’t even taste like food!”

                Will was taken aback. “How can you say that about Funyuns?!”

                Nico eyed the chips in his hand suspiciously.

                “Try a few more,” Lou Ellen counseled, her voice carrying sage knowledge. “They get better with experience.”

                He delicately plucked up another Funyun, and chewed it slowly, noting its consistency that was much like Styrofoam. “They’re still disgusting.” He picked up another ring unconsciously and continued, “But they’re also kind of addictive.”

                Will pumped a fist in the air in conquest. “Good enough!” he shouted, with Lou Ellen, and Nico could swear, Saljjin, repeating his chant boisterously. “Let us feast!”

                They finished their snack and piled back into Lucille, who was sort of growing on Nico, much in the way that spots of mysterious mold seemed to be growing in her trunk. They had not driven more than a mile away from the rest stop before their taxidermized GPS began to spin in place. They pulled over at the nearest parking lot, which was apparently for a tourist attraction called “Bluespring Caverns”.

                The small band of questers got back out of the car, and looked around expectantly for some sort of monster. It was Lou Ellen who noticed that the foot had stopped spinning. She pointed this out to the boys, surmising that they must not be at their true location. To test this theory Will took a step forward on the asphalt, where the crow’s foot immediately began spinning again. “Nope.” He shrugged. “We must be here.” As soon as his sentence finished the foot stopped spinning. Its talons, which normally stayed parallel to the earth, pointed straight down.

                “Oh, great.” said Nico sarcastically, “underground.”

                Three campers from Camp Half-Blood stood in line at the visitor’s center of Bluespring Caverns waiting to buy tickets for the underwater canoe tour. Nico couldn’t help wringing his hands in worry as they inched slowly forward in line. Ever since the House of Hades Nico had developed a ridiculous fear for a child of Hades to have. He was afraid of going underground. He hadn’t had many good experiences underground. Just the thought of being in a cramped cave made his breathing speed up. He didn’t voice any of this to his companions, and stayed silent while they bought their tickets, watched the orientation film, and put on their ridiculous life jackets.

                 Apparently, Bluespring Caverns was notable for having the longest underground river in the United States. Nico couldn’t imagine that it was deep enough to require life vests, but he strapped the buoy around himself and clambered into the boat. It was just 14 middle-aged tourists in floppy hats and three demigod teenagers.

                A cheerful tour guide poled them along the underground river and told them about the unfortunate family of farmers who’d discovered the cave when it had become a sinkhole and swallowed up their pond. Nico tried to breathe evenly and pretend the darkness around the boat extended for miles, instead of pressing in on them with stalactites hanging down from the ceiling like teeth. He leaned into Will a little, searching for some comfort. Will made a quiet noise of surprise before wrapping an arm protectively around Nico. It was cold inside the cave, even though it was August and sweltering outside. The son of Hades was glad for the extra warmth and snuggled a bit into the child of sunlight.

                The tour went on for another 15 minutes or so before things became weird. One of the passengers, a balding man with a large belly, suddenly exclaimed, “Look! A swarm of beetles!” and pointed off to their right.

                The passengers looked to where he was pointing while the tour guide bubbled on about the rare wildlife that could be found in the cave, having found a perfect segue to the topic. The demigod passengers looked too, but they didn’t see an abnormally large swarm of beetles. They saw a small-ish figure clad in red-brown plate armor scuttling away into a small passageway off the side of the riverbank. The questers met eyes. This was their stop.

                Lou Ellen looked up at the guide innocently and raised a hand directly in front of her face. “Stop”, she intoned. Nico felt the insistent need to stop whatever he was doing right that second. The feeling passed quickly, but the mortals on the boat were frozen in whatever action they had been doing last, which was pretty embarrassing for some of them. Especially the woman frozen picking her nose.

                The daughter of Hecate moved her hand away from the guide’s face, and stood up slowly until she could look the woman in the eye. Mist seemed to coil around her feet as she fed new memories to the enthusiastic woman. “You only had 14 passengers on this tour. There were no teenagers here, and there was nothing worth mentioning about this trip. Not even a swarm of beetles.” She turned from the stricken woman and faced the rest of the tourists, repeating her words. She motioned for Will and Nico to exit the boat while she still held their gaze, Will scooping up her teacup pig as he disembarked.

                She backed up to the edge of the boat, their eyes still trained on her. Quickly, she turned away, breaking their gaze and the magic. She stepped out of the craft gracefully. Looking at the cavern in front of her she queried, “Who wants to go spelunking?”


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know how many of you are fans of the online company Roosterteeth, but recently one of their most influential and creative employees tragically died. Instead of gifts or donations they asked that in his memory people do something creative and new and put it into the world, as he had a spectacular gift for creation. So, this chapter is dedicated to the amazing Monty Oum.

As the three demigods walked cautiously out of the range of light provided by the lantern hanging on the bow of the tour boat they began stepping into soft grey mud. The friends wove between the stalagmites, following the scuttling sound made by the diminutive warrior.

                "So," started Will, breaking the silence, "does anyone know which myth is about midgets?"

                Lou Ellen marched up to Will and smacked him on the arm. “‘Midgets’ is not an appropriate term, Will!”

                “Jeez.” he said, rubbing at his arm, “Sorry, Lou.”

                “It’s okay, I guess. But you shouldn’t really be apologizing to me.”

                “How am I supposed to apologize to-?”

                Nico watched them walk and tuned out their conversation. He looked at the back of Will Solace’s head and thought about their kiss last night. Swerving to avoid being impaled by a large stalactite, he touched his lips gently, remembering it. He both wanted more and was terrified of it. Letting go of the way he was raised… it wasn’t easy or automatic. Truthfully, he didn’t know what his mother would have said about it, or his grandparents, or even Bianca, specifically. Hazel was from the 30’s, too. She didn’t know. Maybe she would disown him, how would he know? It wasn’t accepted or normal or any of that, but when he looked at the blonde hair shining in the dim light and the freckles Will had on the back of his neck… he wanted that.

                And he couldn’t have it. Nico was _lying to Will_. He didn’t get to be that happy and lie right to Will’s face. And telling Will about his plan was out of the question. He just had to keep silent about it. Just keep silent and not let something stupid like that kiss happen again.

                Lou and Will stopped in front of him, crouching in the darkness of the cavern. Somehow, there was light coming from the other end of the tunnel, like it opened up to the surface somewhere.

                “Why’d we stop?” whispered Nico.

                Will was incredulous. “Don’t you hear it?”

                “Hear what?” asked Nico, his heart rate increasing steadily.

                “The clicking” answered Lou Ellen.

                The teenagers all fell silent, listening to the undeniable steady clicks coming from further down in the corridor. The noise got incrementally louder, which meant only one thing.

                “It’s getting closer” breathed Will.

                Lou Ellen, Will, And Nico drew out their arms at the same time. Nico’s stygian sword made the already cold cave drop to freezing and the meager light coming from the end of the tunnel was sucked up as quickly as the flame of a candle being snuffed. Nico squinted and could make out Will uncomfortably nocking an arrow to his bowstring, as if he were unfamiliar with the weapon. Most interesting was Lou Ellen, who’d chosen a small velvet pouch as her deterrent.

                They peered down the now-dark passage, but none of them could see much, they could only hear the clicking grow ever-closer. Each of them sensed new presences in the cave and reacted accordingly. Nico swung his sword in as wide an arc as he could manage given the confined space, Will tried to nock and shoot three arrows at once, only managing to actually shoot one of them, and Lou Ellen spread a fine layer of glittery dust from her pouch into the air in front of them. Every shot missed.

                As Nico’s sword passed through the humid cave air he reflected that though he couldn’t see, he probably should have been able to his at least one enemy. Judging from the sounds of frustration made by his friends they were thinking the same thing.

                Two sharp spearheads were suddenly stuck into his thigh, and Nico reevaluated. “Idiots!” he hissed, “They’re midgets!” Lou Ellen didn’t bother correcting his rudeness this time, because they were all occupied with two problems.

                Problem #1: They were now surrounded by enemies who had spears strategically located near the major arteries of their legs.

                Problem #2: They had all loosed attacks meant for man-sized enemies, which had all missed because their assailants were about the height of children.

                The small tide of warriors pushed at their legs, moving them down the dark tunnel, toward who-knew-where.

                The walls of the corridor widened and the questers were propelled into a wide cavern which would probably be lit due to the skylight in its ceiling, however Nico’s sword was still unsheathed and still working its hellish magic. One of the diminutive warriors swatted at Nico’s weapon with its spear and another one poked him in the back of the thigh, silently getting its point across.

                “Okay, we need to put the weapons down, you guys.” Nico said slowly.

                “Why don’t we just jump over them?” Will suggested quietly. “Ow!” he yelped, his hand rubbing at his hamstrings. “So they can speak English, I guess. Let’s just put the weapons down.”

                Laying down his sword de-activated it, and the sun from the sky-light filled the room, illuminating the contents of it, as well as their captors. The large cavern was obviously untouched by humans, because it looked naturally pristine. However, hanging from the ceiling were large, white, _things_. They looked like… slimy punching bags. And in the center of the room, directly underneath the skylight, was a large pile of junk. There were old cars, road signs, and what seemed to be empty carapaces. They were red, brown, and about as long as Nico’s arm.

                It was no coincidence that the warriors matched the shells. Nico looked at the enemies surrounding him and his friends. They had beady black eyes, ruddy skin, and plates of chitinous armor, which appeared to be attached directly to them somehow. They almost reminded him of…

                “Ants.” Lou Ellen, looked at the pincers of her escorts in awe. “These are ants.”

                Nico’s eyes locked onto the spear shafts and the hands that were holding them. The hands were distinctly human. Understanding took hold in the Son of Hades’ mind. “These aren’t ants. They’re Myrmidions.”


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, all. I am not going to make excuses about disappearing for a while. instead i offer you my sincerest apologies. I'm sorry that i left it hanging on a very lackluster chapter. I am on spring break and will be trying to write a little more to make up for my absence. Enjoy!

“Great.” said Willl. “Do we know how to kill _myrmidions_?”

                “They’re still just bug-men. So maybe-” Lou Ellen began to answer but Will cut her off with his own sarcastic response,

                “Right. Giant can of bug spray it is. Oh wait!” he nearly shrieked, his voice becoming shrill. “I left it in the car!”

                The panic was uncharacteristic of Will, but Nico didn’t have time to worry about that. A giant shadow was rising from behind the pile of junk that occupied the room. He was willing to bet that the shadow belonged to something unpleasant.

                A Myrmidion twice the size of its fellows reared its disgusting head over the pile. It used its human limbs to crawl the way an ant would, propelling itself to the zenith of the mound. Nico shouted over Will’s anxious breathing, “I think that’s the queen!”

                As soon as the sentence passed his lips the queen Myrmidion made a quick series of motions with her mandible. Each movement matched up with the voice that rasped in their heads.

                Nico wasn’t sure what a typical ancient Greek ant-woman sounded like, but this one sounded like she’d been gargling gravel and drinking pure lemon juice. Her grating speech was foreignly accented, with each vowel coming out too long, and her “g”s growling softly. “ _Yes. I am the queen of the myrmidions. Daughter of the great kings of the first myrmidions, who were the chosen of Zeus. He came to me some time ago, seeking the help of what he called his greatest kingdom.”_

                Nico’s brain stalled. He tried to come up with a comment to halt her, but the ant approached them unhindered, crawling over the rusty cars and empty plastic jugs. His mouth simply gaped as she continued, her gruff voice once again intruding in their minds. _“He asked for us to guard a prisoner. We were the only soldiers worthy, said he.”_

                Will managed to stammer out, “A prisoner? Who?”

                _“I cannot tell you. I swear upon my legendary forefathers that you shall die unenlightened!”_

                The rasping voice in their minds became an unholy screech as the giant queen launched herself at them. The smaller myrmidions at their knees removed small rusty knives from their belts and sprang towards their demigod captives. Simultaneously the questers sprang for their weapons. It was not the myrmidions’ best idea. Lou Ellen released another handful of shimmering powder and it sizzled menacingly upon contact with the ants. They began to dissolve inside of their protective shells and fell to the ground as their comrades surged ruthlessly over them. Nico sliced through the first wave with his sword, thankful that it was capable of cutting through such strong armor.

                Will, however, could not make any progress with his bow and arrows. He was not an excellent archer by the Apollo cabin’s standards, but even Percy could have shot a few myrmidions at this range. Yet, not a single arrow found its mark and he was soon buried under the plated abdomens of the ant-men.

                Will’s frantic screaming drew Nico’s attention, and he turned to the son of Apollo, slashing through miniature soldiers as he went. He hardly felt a thing until one latched onto the back of his leg, just above his knee. His entire right side filled with searing pain as the formic acid flooded his system. He collapsed onto his knees, his left hand reaching towards the encumbered form of Will as his sword hung limply in his right. He felt the weight of the swarm on his back, forcing him down and moving up towards his neck. The acid was still flowing freely through his body, paralyzing him so that when he received a second bite on his left shoulder he could do little more than loose a gurgling scream from between his teeth.

                His eyes rolled up into his head, and he thought it may have been some kind of hallucination when he heard Lou Ellen scream, “Cover your eyes!”

                Heat washed over him in waves so intense that his skin began to feel numb and cold. The myrmidions on him steamed and cried out in the same grating voices as their queen. The intense heat was over in a mere second, disappearing with a giant FWOOSH.

                The empty shells of the myrmidions dropped in a deadly hail onto Nico and Will, threatening to suffocate them if they didn’t move. Summoning all of his strength Nico shifted his shoulders, moving a single carapace just enough so that he could breathe. He opened a single eye about as far as he could manage, and watched as Lou Ellen mounted a small hill of dead myrmidions.

                _“NO!”_ screamed the voice of the queen. _“My children! You will never feel another second of sunlight on your skin, wretch!”_

The queen, unharmed by Lou Ellen’s fire spell, rushed at the girl, who stood resolutely atop her kills. She waited until the queen leapt at her, and she dropped, sliding down the small slope of the pile she’d created. She slipped underneath the monarch with a golden arrow of Wills clenched in her fist. She thrust it upwards into the queen’s thorax, finishing her slide to safety as the monster disintegrated, her giant shell clattering down onto the bodies of her children.

                Nico let out a relieved breath, his lungs protesting and aching as he did.

                “Will? Nico?” called Lou. The mound in front of Nico shifted, revealing the tanned hand of Will Solace. Nico tried to lift his own arm, but he was still unable to move. His heartbeat quickened. He didn’t know how long the venom would affect him. Or if he would ever recover. He could only watch helplessly as Lou Ellen pulled Will out of the exoskeletons. In the midst of his panic Nico’s sword began to glow with a purple light. It had never done that before.

                The benevolent voice of a woman filled the room. “Thank you for saving me, my grandson. Free your fallen consort, and then release me fully.”


	18. Chapter 18

After a few moments of searching for Nico, Will spotted his sword, glowing with purple energy.

                “Nico!” shouted Will, clambering over the charred carcasses of the myrmidions.

                Nico tried in vain to respond, managing only a twitch of his outstretched fingers and a small gurgle in the back of his throat.  Will reached him and began to heave chitin shells off of the son of Hades. As he excavated Nico the latter’s breathing became less labored. Finally, Nico could focus on Will’s face, pleading with his eyes to be hoisted up. Will wrapped a strong, tan, hand around Nico’s forearm, yanking him free. But Nico was still paralyzed by the formic acid. Will crouched down next to him, muttering a spell, his hands glowing faintly with a golden light as he passed them over the smaller boy’s torso.

                “Sorry, Neeks. My powers aren’t quite as effective now that Dad’s been locked up.”

                His hands ceased to glow and Nico’s breathing eased greatly. The pain faded, though the paralysis remained around most of him. With great effort he moved his fingers to grasp Will’s arm and managed to cough out a quiet “Thanks.”

                Will shifted Nico so that his right arm was suspended over Will’s slim shoulders and the Son of Apollo wrapped his arm comfortingly around Nico’s waist. The 4-legged monster lumbered over to Lou Ellen who was standing serenely in front of the trash pile, her eyelids flickering to reveal the whites of her almond-shaped eyes. She spoke to them in this state, which was disconcerting, even to the son of a death god.

                “She and I will combine powers to create a path. She has waited for you a long time, William.

                With that the purple aura began to buzz around the central pile of junk, and it separated itself into two large piles, as crevasse splitting it down the middle like the parting of the red sea by Moses, a story Nico remembered from a time long gone, sitting in the pews of an ancient cathedral.

                Lou Ellen’s eyes rolled back down and her serenity was gone, replaced by nervous excitement. “I think this could be a turning point for our quest, gentlemen!” she proclaimed.

                She led Nico and Will into the rank canyon made of debris, seemingly unaffected by the rotten smell that increased the deeper they went. Directly under the skylight, in what must have been in the center of the pile, a spiraling staircase revealed itself in the floor, the steps too clean to have been hewn by the ant-men.

                Will dragged Nico down the dirt stairs as if he weighed nothing. Though, reasoned Nico, he probably didn’t weigh much more than that. They descended in silence for a few minutes until the dim light provided by the nest above disappeared completely.

                Finally, the stairs bottomed out, giving way to a small rectangular room carved from dirt in which a giant shape reclined.

                Leto opened her luminous purple eyes at their arrival, her gaze fastened to Will. She had hair as dark as the night sky, and a matronly figure, covered by a modest dress that was once cream, but was stained in many places with blood and dirt. She did not look, by any token, as though she belonged in such a prison. If it weren’t for her unnaturally bright eyes she’d pass for any suburban mother. A giant one.

                “Thank you for coming, William.” she said gently. “I have spent many years of solitude and torture here. Only a demigod could have freed me from my prison, but Hera kept that knowledge and the knowledge of my location closely guarded. Only such an artifact as you have there could have led a hero to me.”

                “It is my honor to rescue you, my lady.” Will responded, giving a respectful nod in place of what would have been an impossible bow.

                “You did not do so alone.” she noted. “Allow me to thank and heal your comrades.” The purple glow of her magic snaked out of her forehead, wrapping itself around Nico while a tendril of energy gently caressed the top of Lou Ellen’s head. At once, the function of his muscles returned to Nico, and he slumped against Will’s side, panting through his open mouth as his lungs cried out for oxygen.

                The magic receded into Leto’s head, and she looked with concern at Lou Ellen. “My dear, I cannot mend you. It is possible though, that someone else can. Progeny of mine are disposed towards healing, you know.” Lou blanched, the color rushing out of her tanned face.

                “Lou? What’s she talking about?” asked Will, his voice full of concern.

                “N-nothing. I don’t know.” She stammered.

                Leto shook her head pityingly. “How is your consort, my grandson?”

                Nico staggered away from Will, finding his own voice. “Much better now, my lady. Thank you.”

                A small smile lit her face. “Anything for my conquering heroes.” She leaned up on her forearms, and dissolved into points of purple light, reassembling at a height slightly taller than a typical human woman, but small enough to fit well inside her cell. She strolled over to Will, taking his face between her hands. “But you are not yet done with your rescues. You shall face Strife before you can reach my beloved son. Great Strife.”

                “Can’t you help us?!” cried Will desperately, losing his composure.

                She looked knowingly at the boy. “I cannot lead this quest. I am a protector, William. You, however, are more than that. You are more than you fear. Give me the relic, I shall enchant it to lead you to your next destination.” She took the crow’s foot from Will and it began to glow and spin once more, imbibed with new purpose.  “You will find your father in the city of _gemelli_.”            

                “Twins” breathed out Nico, translating the Italian effortlessly.

                “Yes, child. My glorious twins.” She spread her arms beatifically, inviting them all into her embrace. “Come to me, young ones. Save my son, and give him my regards. May you all find what it is you need on your quest.” She hugged them into her bosom, and for a moment Nico smelled the mountainy scent of flowers that were now extinct. Her arms were warm and comforting, as a mother’s should be. In the next instant she was gone, a flash of purple light indicating her exit, and the brightness fully drained from the room.


	19. Chapter 19

They clambered out of the skylight, finding themselves in a secluded meadow. They tramped over the surrounding wilderness, subdued and pensive. Lou Ellen’s enthusiasm from earlier was utterly decimated, and Nico could feel worry resting heavily on her soul.

                They reached Lucille and breathed out a relieved breath together, like children who had reached “base” during a game of tag and were finally safe. As they opened the doors Saljjin squealed with happiness, but Lou Ellen didn’t take much notice. She scratched the pig behind his ears absently as she buckled herself into the seat. Though it was early afternoon when they had entered the cave the sun was setting quickly over their escape.

                “Maybe we should stop and rest at a motel…” suggested Nico nervously, unused to being the motivated one.

                “Sure.” mumbled Will. He looked down at the crow’s foot which was guiding them steadily west. “I guess this thing can’t lead us to a Super 8, huh?” he joked lamely.

                Nico laughed louder than was warranted at the joke, trying to fill the melancholy silence.

                They pulled into a motel along the roadside at 6 O’ clock, paying the front desk worker in cash for one room with two beds and a pullout couch. Will thought he was being stealthy, but Nico still noticed as he quietly bargained to work for a few hours in the early morning to pay off their room completely. He was saving his last twenty dollars for food.

                They unloaded their few pieces of luggage into the luxurious room 87, and Lou Ellen shut down any chance at conversation by stating that she was going to take a shower and shutting herself up into the dingy bathroom.

                Will looked sadly at the closed door. “Let’s go get some food, yeah? I think I saw a 7/11 a mile up the road.”

                Nico looked at him askance. “Will there be Funyuns?” he asked suspiciously.

                Will laughed lightly. “Not this time, Neeks.”

                They walked out the door into the warm dusk. “You know, I really hate that nickname.”

                “That’s why I’m using it, Angel.”

                Nico rolled his eyes and punched Will lightly in the arm.

                As they walked in the dirt near the road Nico watched Will’s hand, the one that was wrapped rather intimately around him earlier. It hung down by his side, bronzed and freckled. Nico moved his own hand slightly so the appendages were right next to each other. His pale, spidery hand looked good with Will’s rough, square palm. The contrast was almost artistic. He reached out and intertwined their fingers. It felt even better than it looked.

                “How come Leto didn’t say anything to you, Nico?” Will said abruptly, as though the contact between him and Nico had sparked a reaction.

                “I don’t know. She healed me. That was enough.”

                “Yeah. I don’t think I could have healed that. You were really baldy paralyzed.”

                “It was kind of terrifying, actually” admitted Nico. “I could barely breathe.”

                “And yet, Leto healed you. What is so difficult to heal inside of Lou Ellen that she can’t heal her?”

                “I don’t know.” sighed the son of Hades. “She can tell us if she wants to.”

                “It just- It just gets to me, you know? I’m supposed to be good for one thing, healing. I somehow got stuck leading a quest and I’ve done an awful job so far and then the one thing I’m _can_ do won’t help Lou Ellen! Why am I leading this quest, anyway?! Why not someone else. Why not Jason or Percy or somebody who’s a real hero?!” The speech poured out of him, as if a floodgate holding back his insecurities had been broken down.

                “Will. Don’t be an idiot.”

                “I’m not being stupid, Nico! I’m being realistic! Why am I here?!” He was breathing heavily now, whipped into a panic.

                Nico stopped walking and faced Will, putting a hand on each shoulder. He looked into his beautiful blue eyes, and tried not to get lost in them as he calmed his friend down. “I’ll tell you why you’re here, Will. Because _we_ need you. _I_ need you. _Your Dad_ needs you. And all your siblings in Apollo and Leto and Artemis. We all trust you Will, and even if you aren’t the best with a bow and arrow you’re the best at bringing people together and keeping everyone sane. So you are perfect to lead this quest. You can unify the Olympians.” Will tried to break in but Nico was on a roll. “And then finally, _finally_ , you and I can rest and I swear I am going to love every minute of that.”

                This time, when Nico leaned in for a kiss it didn’t feel dishonest or dirty. He felt no shame. He tasted sweetness and lemongrass and freedom from a past that might one day fade away.

                The sun dropped behind the trees and the flowers closed back up along the roadside as Will pulled away, his eyes sparkling and his breathing uneven. “Now where did an old guy like yourself learn how to kiss like that?”

                “With age comes experience” quipped Nico.

                The boys scoured the 7/11, looking for the best deals, and as Nico watched Will judge the prices on two cans of beans meticulously he felt warm inside. He blushed and ducked his head before Will could turn around and see him.

                They came away triumphant with a baguette, three bananas, two cans of beans, and a liter bottle of ginger ale. They had $9.46 left in their funds, but they tried not to think about it as they went back to the hotel.

                They chatted amicably, as normal teenagers might. Will told him about the antics of the Apollo cabin and an old ferret he once had, while Nico tried to teach him swear words in Italian.

                When they returned to their motel room Lou Ellen was perched on the bed, he hair wrapped into one of those towel turbans that were a feminine secret beyond Nico. Her mood from earlier had subsided, and she created a dinner table for them with the luggage rack and a few cushions from the pullout couch. As they settled in to eat beans and toast, drinking out of mismatched coffee mugs and wiping their mouths on motel washcloths, they bonded like a real family; a family as helter-skelter as the “chairs” they sat on.


End file.
